Extracted
by WIWJ
Summary: sequel to 'Our Worn Out Farewells' When Michael has trouble letting go the life he left behind something goes terribly wrong. Extracting him from the life he worked so hard to build. Differnt Style same universe.
1. Claire

My name is Claire McBride (Westen), and my dad used to be a spy.

This is important for you to know for many reasons. Mostly because it helps to explain what happened on Sept. 28th, but also because it helps explain who we all are. Because if had never been a spy, we all wouldn't be ourselves.

I defiantly wouldn't be an American girl with a semi Irish accent living on and island between England and France, pretending to be someone different all together. I probably wouldn't have been born at all, but with my parents that's hard to imagine. I have a strong feeling that something would have driven them together, even if their jobs hadn't. Sometimes I think my mom needs my dad so much something in her would have caused her to swim across the Atlantic Ocean with out even knowing why.

If you had met my father in the years after his career had ended you would not have suspected that he'd been a covert operative. You wouldn't have thought he'd been on the front lines in Afghanistan and that he was once the most feared name among most Russian intelligence agents .

My father did not watch TV or read newspapers, he never surfed the internet. I always thought that was weird. I remember in the third grade I had to do a paper on current events. My mother nearly lost her mind when I left a copy of the Local London paper face up on the table in our dinning room.

"CLAIRE!" She'd screeched, snatching it up and trusting it towards me like it had been a block of C-4 that I'd left out for my brother to use as silly putty. "You're room with it!" She'd shaken it at me again, her Irish accent touching each word. "Right now!"

I'd thought she was crazy, until September 28th.

Until Sept 28th I didn't realize that my father was a recovering big shot spy who could relapse at any moment. I didn't realize that the minute his left foot accidentally got caught in the spotlight he'd instantly be a target. A threat. My mother understood that all it would take was one mission. One job.

Her and my Uncle Sam had been running jobs for as long as I could remember. When we were in Miami it was out in the open. They'd talk about jobs over Grandma's poorly cooked meals, they'd talk about jobs over beers and ice tea at Carlitios. They'd talk about jobs around me. They'd talk about jobs on the phone with Dad, or more rarely when he was home.

Apparently the four of them, Mom, Dad, Sam and Jesse, had been quiet a team in their day. The days before I was born and before my Dad had gone back to work.

I never really understood the whole Burn Notice thing. I'd never really gotten a good answer. My mom would get all twitchy and feed me some line. My father would simply look wistfully at me and tell me it was a long time ago. Uncle Sam was the only one unaffected by the question.

"Good times, Kid." He'd say with a click of his tongue against his cheek. "Good times."

In my conscious memory, only Uncle Sam and Mom took 'jobs'. It seemed to be Dad's job to worry endlessly. Mom tried to hide the first few jobs from my father, but Dad knew what she was going to do before she ever did, so that was out.

Then it was decided that my father would do the prep work. He'd lay the foundation and help them brainstorm. That did not last long. After a few heated arguments, it was decided that although they would not be secrets, Dad was to have no part in them at all. I have a feeling there may have been a job in between where a Mom saw just how addicted to spy-hood my father really was.

So then, the adults in my life struggled to find the right mix. And before September 28th, it appeared they had.

On September 18th, my Uncle Sam broke the rules, breaking down and asking my father for more help then he should have given. My mother was in danger. He hadn't had much of a choice. The job was wrapped up. All was well, my mother was clueless and my father no worse for wear. Until ten days later.

It was our very first vacation without my Uncle Sam. I was ten, my brother had just turned 3. We were going to Whales to meet with my Uncle, Grandmother Glenanne and three cousins. We never made it.

My parents had been fighting. Not an uncommon thing really, but I mention it because if they hadn't been, it would not have been able to happen. Not to _my_ parents.

My father was distracted by my mother's silent treatment. Fiona McBride (Westen) was a dangerous creature when she was silent.

"Fi." He tried again, nothing. "Fiona I'm just saying that it's not that big of a deal."

"Never is." She'd whispered harshly.

"Fiona.." He'd looked lazily out the window before turning his head back to her. "What was I supposed to do?"

"Not that." She shook her head lightly.

"You are my wife." He whined.

"And I can take care of myself Michael." She breathed, moving as far from him as possible in the confines of the small English car.

"Of course you can." He sighed. "I'm completely unnecessary."

"Oh stop it Michael, honestly!" She snapped turning her face back to him as he stopped at the red light. "Do you really have to be the knight in shining armor? Do you miss it that-"

That's when someone smashed in the window next to my mother and started firing tear gas into our car

The three man team.. I would learn later that it was an extraction team.. began to pull my mother out through the door until my father exited the car, jumped over the roof of it and took down the man on the other side.

I remember my mom's body hurtling into the backseat towards my brother before screaming at me.

"Claire get down. Get down!" She must have freed him from the car seat, because Maddox was soon wheezing and gagging right next to me. "Stay down!"

I know the rest because I heard her explain it in painstaking detail to my Uncle Sam, then to Jesse Porter on the phone. I don't remember first hand what happened because I promptly lost consciousness.

In the story, my mother climbed halfway out her broken window and searched for my father who was being pummeled by the second man on the team. At which point my father yelled at her to go, before she realized team member number three had excited the get away van and was heading towards the driver's side door that my dad had left conveniently open for him. My mother had stepped on the gas before her body had even dropped into the seat. She'd pulled us away and into a crowded market place before rushing back towards my dad. Who was already gone.

I came too in a hospital room, with my mother sobbing into her cell phone..

"-extraction team! I told you! I told you!"

…...


	2. Fiona

My name is Fiona Glenanne McBride (Westen) and I have had a lot of days in my life that I could characterize as the worst.

The day my baby sister was shot and killed. The day that I woke up to find that the love of my life had left in the middle of the night with no goodbye. The day that a woman I didn't know called to tell me that the same man was half dead in a hotel room in Miami and that I was listed as his Emergency Contact. The days that flowed up and down like a roller coaster of doom and gloom for the next four years. The day he up and left again. The day my mother in law died with out so much as a goodbye.

I've had bad days before the events surrounding my husbands extraction and I've had bad days since.

But it was defiantly right up there.

I think I was still shocked when I finally reached Sam on the phone. My hands shook, my whole damn body shook.

"They've taken him." I whispered.

"Fiona?"

"Sam they've taken him."

"Fi what's going on who-."

"Michael! They took Michael!"

"Are you okay? Are the kids okay?"

"No! They are not okay, they are soaked in tear gas and their father has been taken!" I remember screaming. "It was a team. A damned extraction team. I told you. I told you!"

"Mommy?" Claire's croak knocked me out of my rant. I turned my head towards her.

"Baby girl." I didn't realize I'd used Michael's nick name for her until her brown eyes looked eerily around the room. "It's okay Claire."

"Fiona where are you? Fi?" Sam was asking me firmly. I traced my fingers over Claire's puffy red face.

"Daddy.." She cried softly, tears still streaming from her red burning eyes.

"It's okay it's okay." I repeated.

"Fiona? Where are you?" Sam begged in my ear. I tilted the phone towards a nurse and spoke in French to her.

"Please tell him where we are." I murmured before focusing back on my daughter.

…...

When Sam came, Claire had completely lost it. I hate that she tries to be so strong for me, not that I'm not proud, but I'm her mother and I should be protecting her.

On that particular day I wasn't capable of protecting anyone.

"That is not true." Sam looked at me pointedly, cuddling Claire tightly against his chest and rocking her like she was still a baby. She's stopped sobbing and was now sniffling somewhat quietly. "You got them out." His eyebrows rose swiftly.

"Michael got them out. He told me to go.. I didn't even.."

"Fi, You got the kids out of there and went back. You did everything right."

"I didn't notice an extraction team at my window." She snapped. "What's so right about that?"

"He'll get out." I shook my head. He looked down at Claire, moving the hair from her now sleeping face. I stood up and walked over to where my son was. They'd sedated him to treat his eyes. His eyes. My baby needed to be treated for tear gas. "He's Michael Westen."

"No. No Sam he's not." I shook my head, turning back to look at him. "He's not. He hasn't even fired a gun in three years Sam."

"You don't forget, Fi." Sam told her softly.

"We don't know who. Or where. Or why.."

"I'm calling Jesse." Sam sighed, pulling out his phone before pressing a kiss to Claire's head. "You need to tell him exactly what happened."

Exactly what happened was still kind of hazy. I remember the sting in my shoulder when the glass broke. I remember the look on Michael's face. I remember fighting, clawing, choking. Then I remember Michael's body knocking the man away.

_"The kids!" _He'd yelled and I'd thrown myself backwards. He'd said something to me as I pushed up from the two little huddled balls in the backseat. Something I couldn't make out. Something he'd needed me to hear. I'd screamed his name again, He'd knocked the man's arm away from his throat long enough to scream at me. _"GO FIONA GO!" _I stepped back onto the gas petal and dropped into the seat. He yelled something else. Something I didn't hear.

I pulled into a market place, screaming at a woman selling fruit that my children were hurt. Pointing frantically at the car before running back to Michael.

I don't know what he said. What he'd tried to tell me. The noise in my head had echoed so loudly I hadn't heard him. Hadn't focused. Hadn't thought of anything else but the fact that he was being taken away. Again.

I'd failed him. I'd failed Claire and Maddox and Sam.. and myself. And nothing Sam Axe or Jesse Porter could say would make that less true.

…...


	3. Sam

My name is Sam Axe and I had no idea what to say to Fiona.

I'd known it was my fault. I'd been the one to call him in, but we'd been in trouble. Deeper than I was comfortable with and when the guy got in my face and threatened Fi. I gotta tell you, I'd had enough.

I'd asked Mike to make a call, help me form a plan. He'd done it all from the weapo- sorry- _gardening_ shed. He'd never left the island. He'd never even left the back yard. The guy threatened to kill Fiona. Kill her. Was I supposed to do nothing?

Mike and I talked another way out of the predicament. He used some strategy from a job he did over a decade ago in Serbia. The bad guys went to jail. It was over. Everything was under is what I told Jesse as he and I broke apart what happened.

"How's Fi?" He asked sofly as we drove slowly to the Inn.

"Mike's been missing a week with no leads how the hell do you think she is?" I shook my head. "She's a mess."

"You guys need to get back home."

"Yeah, that's not going to happen." I snorted. Even I couldn't convince Fiona to leave with out Mike.

"Sam this guy was after Fiona. He'll be back to get her."

"I'm with you man but you're not going to get Fiona out of France." I smirked.

"And since when do you go through France to get to Whales?"

"They were flying out of St. Malo."

"Who knew that?" Jesse was making lists in his head. Considering possiblities that I'm sure I'd already considered.

"Me." I shrugged. "People on the Ferry.."

We pulled into the small parking lot, grabbing Jesse's bag and started towards the door. He unlocked it slowly.

"Fiona?" I called cautiously. "Fi, it's us."

Claire looked up at me from the desk as I looked around slowly, trying to insure that her mother wasn't about to blow our heads off. She turned the page of the book she was reading to Maddox before smiling shyly at Jesse.

"Whoa Claire you grew up!" Jesse exclaimed, grinning at her before looking at Maddox who was regauriding the stranger with caution. I scooped him up and swung him aroud to face Jesse. "Oh my God you look just like your mom." He raised his eyebrows high and Maddox giggled.

"Where is your mom?" I looked at Claire, it wasn't a real question. I knew where she was.

"Bathtub." Claire said softly rolling her eyes at me. I tried not to shake my head before knocking on the door. "Again."

"Fi." I knocked softly before pressing my other hand to my hip and knocking harder with the other. "Fi come on, Jesse's here."

"What's she doing?" Jesse was standing close enough to hide his question from Claire, but I knew better than to think we're hiding anything from her.

"She's trying to remember." I sigh. "She thinks Michael said something that would help us. She's grasping.."

"I'm not grasping Sam." Fiona muttered as the door swung open with a whoosh and she stormed out still tugging the tie on Mike's black robe. "I'm not delusional, Sam. I we did work together for almost fifteen years. I know when he's trying to tell me something."

"Fi." She didn't look up at Jesse, just kept staring straight ahead. "We'll get him back."

Her eyes clenched shut and I knew what she was thinking. We shouldn't _have_ to get him back. She should have never let him be taken. I knew because I'd been thinking the same thing all day. I should have gone along. I should have been there.

"Let's go over what we have." Jesse sighed.

"We've been over it!" Fiona snapped.

"We'll it's all we have so.." I had to hand it to Jesse, he knew how to handle Fiona, even when she's at her worst. His calm steady tone brought her back to reality. He nodded at her when she looked up before turning his head to me. "Tell me about how Mike got involved in the job."

"The guy had Fiona's number. He knew where she was, that she was alone with the client.." I stopped, thinking of how close we had come to disaster. Fiona was still staring at the invisible answer she was sure would suddenly come into focus if she just tried harder. "I was completely cut off from her. I called Mike he said the whole thing sounded like this job he did in Serbia, he told me what he did. Called the authorities while I went in and executed the plan."

"Serbia.." Fiona whispered softly, her eyes squinting.

"Fi?" Jesse looked at her.

"Come on, Michael! _Help me_." She whispered. "Something about Serbia.."

Jesse leaned forward to touch her, but I put up my hand, watching the slow look of realization already forming on her pale face.

"Larry." She breathed, before looking up at me with wide frightened eyes. "He said _Larry_."


	4. Michael

My name is Michael Westen, and a week ago I was a stay at home dad.

Today I'm back to burned spy, but I this time I burned myself.

The extraction was never about my wife. I realized that as soon as I took down the first guy. The second guy didn't seem surprised, thrown off or undaunted. He seemed to have expected what had just occurred. It wasn't till he had me pinned to the ground and one glance over his shoulder told me why.

The shark smile, the impeccable posture I'd at some point come to model. I would know him anywhere.

"Larry." My exclamation was drown out by Fiona's scream. His attention faltered and his hand touched his side arm. The man's arm clenched around my throat and I fought not to pass out. Larry Sizemore wold not hesitate to kill my family, and I knew that. Fi was searching me with her stinging eyes, looking for a way to help. "It's Larry!" I croaked out pushing at the hands to gain enough oxygen to help her. "GO FIONA GO!"

…...

"Michael." Larry's voice surrounded me when I woke up. It echoed off the inside of my skull. "Ah see. I told them I didn't hit you too hard. My team was worried I scrambled your brain. I tried to tell them you had too hard of a head for that." I tried to focus but it was futile. "Do you know how long I waited for you? Do you have any idea?"

"Larry.."

"I was _heartbroken_ when I heard you'd died." Larry sounded less then heartbroken. "Heard you were last seen walking into a building before it exploded." He stood directly above me now. I could see the outline of his face. "You took that one right from your old buddy Larry's playbook didn't you?" The world started to rock and blur again before Larry's hand smacked hard against my face. "Am I boring you, Son?" He smiled at me. "Where was I? Oh yes. I waited. I knew eventually that you would show up again. I was surprised to find out you left the work to Sam and Fiona! You really committed to laying low didn't you? So I had to send a message, to let you know it was okay to come out. You remembered our last few months in Serbia. Did you like the way I recreated it for you?"

"No." I managed to grunt.

"As soon as you made your move.. or my move really, since you'd just re-executed _my_ plan. I'd known it was you.. alive and well." He smiled at me. "So then all I had to do was send Fiona home with a new phone accessory and wait." He chuckled. "Christmas came early with those travel plans! Little family get away huh?"

I reminded myself not to ask. Not to ask about Fiona or the kids. To trust that she'd gotten out of there. Trust that they weren't waking up in similar rooms. Basic spy 101. Don't give them emotional leverage.

Larry already had enough emotional leverage. The things that he taught me had both made me good at my job and still on occasion kept me up at night.

My mind swam in front of me.

"How long have I been out?" I asked softly.

"Six days." Larry said flippantly as if it had been minutes.

"You drugged me?"

"Yes." Larry whistled. "Not an easy man to knock out Mike. And man do you talk in your sleep! I don't know how Fiona gets any rest with you."

I ground my jaw to keep from repeating her name. The room was becoming more clear. It was a hotel. I was laying on a bed. My ankles were zip tied, my hands bound with soft restraints. Larry knew my weaknesses, Larry knew my strengths. And now that he knew I was alive and well, Larry knew everything there was to know.

"Oh, don't fret, it's so unlike you. She got away Micheal.. but then you know it was never about her.. It's you I want."

"You'll always hold a special place in my heart Larry, but I'm married." I countered, slowly taking inventory of myself trying to make sure all the parts were all accounted for and working properly.

"Almost seven years now. Time for that itch don't you think Michael?"

"You just had to say itch didn't you?" I said in my best complacent tone, holding up a bound hand with a grin. "Now that's all I can think about." Larry chuckled again.

"I know you miss it. I could tell by how quickly you jumped in." He wagged a finger at me and the motion seemed too much for my eyes to register.

"I don't miss it." The room started to spin again as I tried to concentrate. Tried to figure out what to say. Who to be.

"You do!" He implored. "The mind games, outsmarting everyone. You used to really enjoy that part remember?" I couldn't reply. "The feel of a machine pistol in your grip as you fire at will!"

"I don't miss it." The bile churning in my gut made it to the back of my throat.

"You jumped right back in, Son!" He said again like it was proof.

"You threatened my wife!" I yelped before my body began to heave, I twisted towards the edge of the bed, rolling as far as my restraints could stretch. Pain shot across my chest and back temporarily pausing my body from it's purpose, but not for long.

Larry jumped back just before I could vomit on his wingtips, but I think he got my message just the same.

"Shoot him up again." He ordered.

I might have protested, if I had any strength left at all. "..don't miss it."


	5. Jesse

My name is Jesse Porter and I used to be a burned spy.

It was the longest year of my life, and the most challenging.

There was a point in time where I would have said it was the worst, but I know that's not true. I'm a better spy, a better strategist, a better friend and a better man because of what I went through that year.

It's because of Michael (Westen). Fiona and Sam too, but mostly Mike. Being part of a team, _their team_, changed me in ways that I couldn't even realize until later.

That's why I'm here. That's why when Sam called I jumped on a plane and rushed to France. Because my team needed me.

It took me almost 12 hrs. to gain access to a secure line, another hour to get through to Monica Delabra and another thirty minutes to convince her to help me.

"Come on Monica the guy roughed her up right in front of her kids."

"You're sure it's this guy? This Larry guy, because the good Intel says he's dead. Intel that Michael Westen himself is a part of."

"Yeah well, if you look back at the Westen tapes you'll see he talks about two encounters with Larry the walking dead. So I'm pretty confident Fiona would recognize him." I sighed once again thanking Marv for his paranoia. I, by this time, had already referenced the infamous 'Westen tapes' more than I would have thought possible. It was the next best thing to being able to say 'Michael said.'. Which is hard to do when someone's _dead_. "Sides the guy switched the Sim card on Fiona's phone and bugged it the same way he'd done Michael's years ago. It's him."

I waited for Monica to think, leaning forward in my chair as she did. She was our best hope at that moment. The best chance we had at finding Mike.

"So what exactly do you want me to do?"

"Help me find the guy." I told her quickly before she changed her mind.

"And then what?" I didn't miss the hint of warning in her voice. The message was clear, tread softly, don't give me a reason to say no.

"I'll take care of him." I said evenly. Monica wanted this as much as I did. I could tell.

"I'm assuming you mean turning him over to the proper authorities?" Monica said sharply. That's not exactly what I had planned. More like turning him over to Fiona and the proper firearm.

"Monica you have my word I won't touch a hair on his head." I promised like the boy scout I was pretty sure everyone still thought I was. It was the truth too, Fiona wasn't going to let anyone else take this from her. "I just want to keep this guy away from Michael's family."

"You think he's the man that killed Westen?" Staying as close to the truth as possible is the best way to avoid a lie, that's a very basic skill. One that I had mastered.

"I think that it's little ironic that Mike dies walking into a house explosion and that's the same way this guy faked his death." I was right about the irony. The whole situation was ironic. I wondered for a second if Mike and Fi had thought about Larry while they were formulating their exit plan.

Michael's handler of six years sighed heavily before she made her decision.

"I dig this guy up you take him down." She muttered, before finishing. "I'll be in touch."

I nodded my head to myself in the empty office building before making my way outside and calling Sam.

"She's in. Tell Fi."

…...

"You are not going." Sam said firmly as I quickly turned my back on the two of them like that would provide some sort of privacy. Or myself some cover.

"I'm sorry." I listened to Fiona pull the hammer back on her hand gun. "What did you say?"

"Fiona you're not thinking straight. You're not sleeping. You're a liability and you know it."

I actually winced at that one, just because he was right didn't mean Fiona wasn't going to rip his head off.

"Who the hell are-?"

"Someone has to stay with Maddox and Claire and in my opinion that should be the biggest liability and right now Fi? That's you."

"Sam you better-!"

"He's right." I said loudly, turning slowly, half expecting to see the barrel of Fiona's gun in my face. "We'll get him out Fiona."

She shook her head frantically before dropping to the bed. Claire ran her teeth across her lips and scrunched her small body into a tighter ball, pulling her knees closer to her chest.

"You need to stay here. Protect the kids. Protect yourself. Give Mike something to come home to Fiona." Sam's voice was almost pleading. "You give Larry any leverage at all and he'll use it. So tomorrow we go and you lock the door and sit here with a Mac 10 pointed at the window until we get back."

She looked at him for a long moment before turning and looking at her daughter. Claire wiped at the tears on her cheeks in a very Fiona like way. As if she had no time for them.

"Alright then." She said calmly, Sam blinked at her.

"That's it? No more arguments?" He asked softly. "I was ready for another round, Fi."

"No Sam, you win alright?" She huffed before turning to her daughter. "Help me take the blankets off the bed and put them in the bathtub, McBride. You and Maddox can sleep in there tonight. Now that we know we're dealing with Larry we can't be too careful." Sam smiled at the girl as she pulled the sheets and pillows off of the bed she had been sharing with her mother. "That'll give them another layer of protection." Fiona whispered to Sam, her mouth drawn into a scowl.

"Fi.." He shook his head slwoly.

"I'm tired Sam." She said absently, turning to pick up her sleeping son and moving towards the bathroom. "My kids are scared and I want my husband back." She turned at the door and looked at her long time friend. "Just get him back."

I turned to Axe as the door shut behind them.

"That was too easy." I sighed.

"Yeah. Yeah it was." He grimaced, rubbing his hand down his face before picking up his phone again and heading to the door. "Yeah.. hey it's Sam Axe. I need a big favor. How soon can you get to France?"


	6. Virgil

...

My name is Virgil Watkins and I _was _in love with Madelyn Westen. I know that Michael had his doubts, but he wasn't around in the later years when I'd made my way back to Miami.

Nate had a better understanding of my relationship with his mom. He'd gotten to see more of it I guess. Or he'd gotten to see it while no one was shooting, which probably made it a lot easier to take.

When Sam called I didn't hesitate. I'd do anything for Maddy's boys.

"Nate?" I'd called softly into the phone when Madelyn's youngest had finally picked up on the sixth ring. "It's Virgil. I just found out we're needed in France."

…...

"They'd been in this crap hotel for a week." Lucy Chen was a beautiful girl. I was having a hard time imagining she had ever been a bad ass spy. She looked like a high-schooler. "I put them up in a chateau in the middle of no where and hired out some people. They have no idea who they're protecting but that's probably for the best."

She tapped furiously at her phone and for a split second I wondered if she was texting her 'bff'' about how she'd have to miss the mall due to her new mission.

"I'm still not sure how the hell this happened." Nate Westen shook his head before rubbing it. He looked like Michael. "How the hell did someone find him? I didn't even know where he was."

"You don't know Larry." Barry Burkowski raised a perfectly manicured eyebrow at the younger Westen before fiddling with his seat belt. "He and Mike like share half a brain or something. The guy probably summoned him with his mind." Lucy snorted, I looked back at Nate who had Madelyn's expression on his face. "The guy's bad bad news."

"Super." Nate quipped, nodding his head before shaking it quickly.

"You look so much like your Mama right now." It slipped, it really did, but the look on Nate's face didn't falter.

"I wish she was here." He muttered absently.

"She is." Barry told him flippantly, pulling out his own phone and starting to mess with it. "I guarantee you, she's right in the middle of this."

Nate swallowed hard before turning his head from Barry to me, I managed a tight nod before Nate's chin dropped to his chest. The cabin of Lucy's plane lapsed into a reverent silence. I'd almost nodded off before Michael's money guy cleared his throat.

"Sam's got a plan right?" He asked, raising an eyebrow at Lucy before turning slowly towards me.

"I sure as God hope so." I murmured before fluffing up my pillow and reclosing my eyes.

…...

"What we're in need of here is a plan." Sam Axe muttered, rubbing his head like he was fighting off a migraine. Next to me Barry made a grunting noise and dropped his head into his hands.

"Well. I mean you guys have to be working on something right?" I said softly.

"Yeah.. well."

"Sam?" The call made all of us turn our heads at once, as Jesse cautiously lead Fiona and the children into the room.

Michael's wife's eyes scanned over the crowd of armed vigilantes.

"Jesus Sam did you just post an ad in the Miami Herald?" She whispered. "Does everyone get to know he's alive now?"

"Come on, Fi. It's Lucy and Virgil." Sam hissed before realizing Lucy had never met the new man in the room. He sighed, chucking a finger at Jesse. "Lucy, Jesse. Jesse, Lucy."

"Pleasure." Porter whispered with a quick handshake. The corner of Nate's mouth twitched up as Lucy nodded.

"Okay now that we're all acquainted. We need a plan." I said softly, my eyes drifting over to Madelyn's grandchildren. Claire ran her hand over her brother's head before, reaching for her mothers hand.

...

"And your Grandmother just climbed right up after you and pulled you down. " I looked at Claire, her bright brown eyes crinkled just like her father's when she smiled. "You don't remember that?"

"I was three!" She told me with that quick Westen droll.

"You were old enough to climb a tree!"

"Not old enough to get down!" Madelyn's granddaughter put her hand over her face and giggled in embarrassment.

"Alright." Nate Westen whispered wistfully. "It's late, Claire should go to bed." He looked down at his niece who nodded at him. "I'll walk you up."

"Good night Mr. Virgil." I hugged the string bean of a girl before Nate took her hand and led her to the steps.

I turned my attention back to Fiona who lay on an oversized chair near the windows that Sam had been lecturing her all day to stay away from.

"I can't believe you never told her that story." I said softly, dropping down in front of her at the table.

"I'd forgotten." Fi muttered, staring out into the night.

"You know Fiona one of these days you're going to have to forgive her." The words were gentle, but her head still snapped up at me with fury.

"Forgive _her_?"

"Yes. She thought she was protecting you."

"She was protecting herself." Fiona shook her head, her lip curving into a sad smile. "Westen trait. Sacrificing yourself for the ones you love. Very noble. As long as the ones you love don't figure out that you're really just afraid of goodbye."

"Fiona she didn't want you to change anything. She didn't want to disrupt your life."

"Ha." Fiona sniffed. "She died alone to spare me the inconvience?"

"Sweetheart. She didn't die alone." I reached out my hand to hers. "Sam and I were there. He held her hand and told all the stories about all your past adventures. He talked about Claire and the baby. I was right there on the other side, Honey. Jesse stood guard at the door. She wasn't alone."

"I should have-."

"She didn't want you and Claire to remember her pale and struggling to breathe! She didn't want Claire's last memories to be of her wasting away in a bed." Fiona stopped, raising her eyes to me "She didn't want _your _memories to be of her wasting away in a bed."

She shook her head, swatting at the tears on her cheeks.

"What is your last memory?" I asked her softly.

"She was trying to teach me how to make corned beef."

"Maddy knew how to make-?"

"Of course not!" Fiona exclaimed before starting to laugh. I laughed too. "We were bickering about salt.. or no.. those little pepper balls and how much was too much."

"Sounds real nice."

"It was perfect." I watched her lip tremble.

"She loved you so Fiona."

"I loved her more." Fi tried to brush her tears away again before her eyes fixed on the vast darkness out the window. "I wish she was here.. I-."

"We're going to get Mike back." I assured her. "He'll hold on until we got this all straight."

"You don't know what Larry does to him." She spit the words out violently. "He's so tempting. So persuasive. Plays these damn mind games that make him question everything he knows is true."

I shook my head again, cupping my hand under Fiona's chin.

"He'll hold on until we've got this all straight."

She nodded slowly as I kissed her cheek and walked slowly up the steps and into my room, fishing my wallet out of my back pocket. Sam had taken the picture one day on South Beach. Madelyn has a white sun hat on and her arms are tossed around Claire as she leans back against my shoulder laughing at what ever Sam said before the flash went off.

"You keep our boy holding on until we get there Maddy." I all but ordered.

…...

**A/N Maybe a little romance for Jesse? He was such a good boy in the finale. **


	7. Lucy

**...**

My name is Lucy Chen and Michael Westen taught me everything I know. I'm thinking that's why after the vigorous debate on ways to get to Larry with out getting Michael killed, Sam Axe turned to me with a smile.

"I'm with Jesse. How 'bout you." He asked honestly, earning a huff from Fiona and her much more _ambitious_ plan.

"Michael would be with Jesse." I nodded, Axe turned his face to Mrs. Westen. She shook her head fratically.

"We know where he is!" She snapped.

"We know where Larry is. We have no idea where Michael is and if we go to Larry guns blazing we never will." Jesse said softly.

"Surveillance is your bloody answer for everything!" She snorted.

"Surveillance is what you do to figure out who and what you're up against." Sam countered. "Not a bad thing to know."

"You sound like Michael." She whispered in irritation.

"Exactly."Jesse put his palms up. "Case closed, enough said. Let's break into two man teams and get out there."

"I'm with you." Fiona said stiffly, standing up and reaching for her nearest firearm.

"No." Sam raised his arm to her, shaking his head. "You are waiting until Jesse and I know what's going on up there. You and Barry and Virgil will stay here. Virge you work the phones, see if you can find out what the hell Larry wants with him anyway. Anything big going on around here. Anything shady that might need Mikes.. skill set." The other man nodded, I turned my face back to Fiona she was shaking her head in irritation. "Nate you can come with me. Jesse can take Lucy."

I replayed that in my mind for a second. _Jesse can take Lucy._ He looked at me and smiled._ Yes Yes he can. Lucy is defiantly okay with that. _

"What the hell am I supposed to do? Knit socks?" Fiona fumed.

"No." Sam exhaled slowly. "You and Barry are going to go through every one of these files we have on Larry and Michael's history together. He already used a past case to lure Mike out. There may be more answers in there."

"Super." She pouted. "I get to read _101 ways to corrupt Michael Westen_. While you guys sit outside while Larry the super villian does God knows what-."

"Enough!" Jesse voice was loud, but his tone was gentle, he looked Fiona over with wide eyes and arched brows. "You hate surveillance. So drop this and do your job."

She folded her arms across her chest, but stopped running her mouth almost immediately. I was impressed. In the years I'd been acquainted with Fiona Glenanne, she'd never shut up so quickly for anyone other than Michael himself. He turned to me and I almost jumped in surprise. "You ready to go?"

"Yeah." I nodded stupidly, grabbing my weapon and hurrying after him.

…...

"So Mike was your trainer?" I jumped a little when his voice rumbled through the car. I pulled the infrared bino's from my face and looked at him for a second.

"Yeah."

"And Larry was his?"

"Larry was his." I repeated with a slight edge in my voice before sighing. "But lucky for him he'd had Sam and some other good guys before him."

"Hard to imagine Sam training Mike." He smiled a little before leaning his head back against the headrest.

"Really?" I tried to keep the edge out of my voice, but the way his face turned in my direction quickly I knew I hadn't. I couldn't help it. Sam Axe was someone who meant a lot to me. "I think Sam has a lot to teach-."

"Whoa, hey! Sam's my buddy. You don't have to sell me on him. I'm sold. He's taught me more than I can remember. I'm just saying. Mike's Mike." He waved his hands in surrender. It made me smile. He was cute, that was for sure, but it was more than that. He had this boyish exuberance that I found intriguing. He talked fast, and gestured slowly, and I found it impossible to stop smiling at him.

"It's not like he was born that way." I teased, turning back to my bino's. "He was trained."

"I guess."

"And what about you? How did you meet Michael?"

"That Agent Chen is a very long story." He blew air out of his mouth in an almost whistle.

"Agent Chen!" I laughed. "I haven't been called that in.. forever."

"Hey yeah. Why'd you get out anyway?" I could hear the sound of the bag of chips crinkle as he dug to the bottom.

"Afghanistan." I huffed bitterly. He waited for me to continue, I didn't.

"_Afghanistan_." He repeated. "Care to elaborate?"

"Ever been?" I glanced at him quickly.

"Nope." He raised an eyebrow at me.

"Then you wouldn't understand." I went back to my search.

'Try me!" He scoffed.

"Oh so tempting Agent Porter." I purred. "But no."

"Wow." Jesse said softly. "You know I think-."

"He's moving!" I yelped quickly, leaning forward as if I could make the binoculars work better that way.

"You're sure?"

"Yes I'm sure." I hissed.

"Sam." He called into the closed channel walkies.

"Yeah Jes?"

"Larry's moving out."

"You're kidding me?" He sighed.

"Nope headed your way Sam." I said quickly.

"Okay. Nate and I will trail him." He sounded almost sad about it, Jesse winked at me. "You guys poke around here and see what you can find."

"Roger that." Porter told him with a sigh.

"Be careful. Even if Mike's sitting in the foyer with a bow and a big sign that says 'take me' I want you guys to wait for us."

"Roger that too Buddy." Jesse released the button of the walkie and turned to look at me. "Let's do this."

…...

"What the hell happened?" Virgil moaned as Jesse carried me into the living room and sat me on the sofa.

"I'm fine." I told them quickly. "It's just twisted."

"It's pretty swollen for a _twist_." He fiddled with my shoe before pulling it off. I bit my lip to keep from wincing. "It's at least a sprain."

"Oh goodie! Does this mean I'm not the biggest liability anymore?" Fiona asked, practically sticking her tongue out at her friend.

"Fi come on." Jesse huffed. "We have ice right?"

"In the freezer I'd think." She glared at him as he hurried off. She leaned in to me. "You did tell him that you once walked three miles with a broken pelvis right?"

"No. I left that out." I whispered to her. She raised an eyebrow before smiling wider than I'd seen since we arrived in France.

"Well played Miss. Chen." She teased, as Jesse rushed back in with ice.

"We didn't see any signs of him." Porter muttered looking at Fi. "I don't think he's there. The place was deserted. He's not going to leave Michael Westen unguarded while he slips down the road for a slushy."

"Hey!" Sam called, hurrying into the house. "Everybody okay?"

"Lucy's ankles in pretty bad shape." Jesse sighed, moving the ice around my leg. Sam's face went slack and he tilted his knowing eyes at me. "She got caught up in the fence."

"Really?" Sam looked hard at me.

"Well it did hurt!" I snapped back.

"Okay, can we put this aside and find Michael?" Fiona exclaimed, moving her hands around Jesse and I in a circle.

"It's pretty cute." Nate sighed, dropping into a chair.

"A lot cuter than what we found out." Sam shook his head.

"You found him?" My voice even sounded pleading to me.

"I think so." Sam moved across the room and sat in front of me and Fiona. "We followed Larry to a psychiatric hospital up the road."

"A.." She blinked at him. "He's got Michael in a mental institution?"

"Fi.." Sam warned, holding up his hand to her.

"Why are we still sitting here?" She stood up, I tugged her back down.

"What do you think we should do? Walk in there and demand Michael back?" I kept my hand on Fiona's arm.

Michael's wife growled before jumping off the couch and making her way back to the windows.

"We don't know what's going on." Sam sighed. "But it's time we find out."

"Sizemore's impersonated a physician before." Barry sighed, holding up a peice from the file. "He probably has Mike admitted there."

"Virgil, how's your French?" Sam asked slowly, looking from him to Nate.

"Not fluent." The old Seal snorted.

"Then start brushing up." His hand clamped down on Nate's shoulder. "I think my boy Nate here's having some psychological problems."


	8. Nate

**...**

My name is Nate Westen and my brother may actually cause me to be admitted to a psychiatric hospital. Ha.. not the first time I get to say that.

My wife is going to kill me. That's all I'm thinking as Sam cups my shoulder.

"Why me exactly?" I squeaked. "Isn't this a job for the actual.. spies."

"Larry doesn't know you. He knows everyone else in the room but you and Virgil."

"I don't know.." I shook my head at him before looking over at Virgil. He pursed his lips.

"Je pense que nous devons mettre en place votre peur du fils de l'échec. Nous pouvons le faire." He said nodding slowly.

Sam's face lit up.

"Sounds perfect to me." Lucy grinned.

"You need to watch your dipthong." Fiona whispered her eyes darting to the window.

"Oh Sweetheart I always watch my dipthong." He told her in a very Sam like tone. She shook her head. I winced, they guy had slept with my mother for Gods sake.

"Very funny." I quipped. "I don't even know what the hell he just said."

"You'll be fine, just twitch and moan and yell a lot." Sam shook his head. "Lucy you want to help me whip up some cred for my doctor friend here?"

"Sure." She smiled softly before looking at Jesse. He pulled the ice off of her foot and looked towards the door to the office.

"Let me help." The tall man whispered gently, pulling her up and 'assisting' in getting her in the room. I smiled, wondering if I was ever that transparent. Probably. I was thinking how everyone is at first, until my eyes fell on my sister in law. I knew with out a doubt that my brother had never ever been that transparent. My brother prided himself in being unreadable, and his feelings for Fiona, although not unreadable, were far from transparent.

However Fiona; crazy, tumultuous, fiery Fiona, wore her feelings for him on her sleeve. I took a deep breath and looked across the room. Fi had her hands pressed against the window as if she could see him on the other side.

I realized in that moment if acting like an insane Frenchman would get my brother home to his family faster? I'd let them give me electric shock therapy.

…...

Virgil's french seemed to be as acceptable as his false credentials. We got right in. Sam had figured that Larry would have Mike in solitary, so that's where we went. They'd searched my bags of course, but they didn't search Virge's. So as soon as we were in the room he and I got to work hiding the surveillance equipment.

"From what I understood?" He gave me a wide eyed look and I wondered how good his understanding was of the foreign language was. "There are four solitary rooms, two on either side of us and one across the hall. Here's hoping that he's in one of the ones beside us."

I raised my eyebrows at him before hoisting myself up onto the dresser and started to examine the vent. The older man handed me the small camera on a wire and I threaded it slowly until it clinked softly against the grate.

He turned the hand held monitor and studied the figure in the next room. I held my breath and he shook his head. I pulled back the camera and hopped down.

"Empty. Bed's not made." He whispered, I nodded, pointing to the other side. I pulled the insulated drill and a screwdriver from the briefcase and started working on the electrical outlet. This room was harder to check, but it wouldn't be nearly as difficult as the room across the hall. I laid flat on the floor and tried to channel my brother. We all know that Michael Westen would never electrocute himself trying to place surveillance equipment.

I slipped the camera through the socket, adjusting it until Virgil's hand went up to stop me. He studied the screen before his eyes closed.

I moved away from the outlet and joined him at the screen. There was my bother tied to the bed in the room next door.

I could tell Virgil was struggling trying to decide if it was really Michael, but I had no problem.

"It's him." I whispered.

"You're sure?"

"See that scar on his forearm? I did that with a stick when I was ten." I rubbed my face.

"He's in bad shape." Virgil muttered.

"How do you know?" He looked like he'd passed out. If it weren't for the restraints it would look like he'd just come back from a long night at the clubs, his body sprawled out against the bed, legs hanging over the edge.

"His breathings erratic." He gestured at the screen. "Too fast, long pauses. They've drugged him."

"You can tell all that from that little picture?" My voice rose in an attempt to prove Virgil wrong even when I knew he was right. He pressed his finger against his lips. I closed mine.

"Get the bug in there and close the rest of it up." He rubbed his face before looking at the ceiling. "We need to get up there and get another camera in the light fixture."

"I- I've never done anything like that." I stumbled, before realizing how stupid that sounded. I'd never been committed before. Or drilled into an electrical outlet. Or been to France for that matter. "But I guess I'll figure it out?"

"Hope you're a fast learner." Virgil muttered before handing me the bug.

…...

Larry came to see my brother in the morning. He shot him up and talked to him about missions. Old missions I was sure he'd actually been on as well as some I was sure he'd never been a part of. Larry talked for hours, repeating himself until I felt like I had been on the damn missions myself.

Michael would fight him at first when he asked him for details, claiming he didn't know. Little by little though, Michael would provide him with answers.

I watched his face crumple as he realized what was happening.

"We'll be back to work soon Mike. Soon as you get better."

"Better." My brother whispered into the room.

"Yes. You were sick. Very sick. But soon you'll be fine."

"Sick. I'm.. I think I'm.."

"You're getting stronger everyday." Larry said softly, laying his hand on my brother's arm. "Soon I'll take you home."

"Home.." Michael sighed.

"Back to work." Larry told him calmly.

"No.. I.. don't.. home?" His eyes started to tear up, Larry looked at his nurse.

"A little less this time. I think he's starting to come around." Larry flashed his biggest smile. "I have to go Mike. But I'll be back tomorrow."

"No.. Larry.. I.." My brother reached out to his captor, grasping at his shirt. "Don't leave me here."

"It's alright Kid." He shushed. "I'll be back."

I closed my eyes tightly as the nurse injected him with what ever the hell Larry had chosen before following the madman out the door.

"Please.. Larry.. Don't leave me here.."

…...


	9. The daughter

Being Michael Westen's daughter was for the most part a good thing.

The father I longed for the fall that Larry Sizemore had him was the guy who helped me with my homework.(As long as it didn't involve current events, mom's orders.) The guy that played basket ball with me and Maddox in the back yard. The guy that read to us at bedtime.

My dad was gentle and calm. He treated us like we were the smartest most amazing creatures ever to walk the Earth. My dad was almost as big a push over as my uncle Sam.

My mom was a firecracker in a tinderbox and my father was the only thing between her and the matches. He adored mom with quiet reverence. The whole while pushing her softly to be more than she even thought she could be.

It was October 16th when I realized that she may have been pushed too far this time. I'd seen my mother loose her temper, but until my dad had been held captive for nearly three weeks, I'd never seen her loose her mind.

"Virgil finally talked to Larry last night. He told him Mike was a patient he'd worked with in the US. He was suffering from PTSD and had all kinds of 'delusions'."

My mom bounced on her toes a few times before clenching her jaw and looking at the screen.

"Sam we have got to get him out of there!"

"We have a plan Fi, but we're only going to get one shot at it." My 'uncle' whispered calmly, nodding at the other woman in the room before taking a long sip of coffee from the mug next to him.

"If we isolate Larry, keep him away from the hospital for a few hours.." Lucy whispered.

"How about if we just SHOOT HIM and be done with it!" My mother yelled, grabbing the mug nearest to her and smashing it against the table.

I gasped, pulling my bare legs onto the couch quickly as the ceramic shattered against the Tuscan tiles, shards flying everywhere.

My uncle Sam's face hardened as he turned slowly towards my mom, who's mouth moved in little gulps like a water starved fish. She turned her head to me and I struggled not to cry.

"Claire." Sam said calmly, his boots crunching across the broken pieces until his arm stretched out and pulled me up. "Why don't you go help Jesse give your brother a bath?" I stared at him and then at my bare feet. He pulled me forward until I stood on the coffee table before lifting me piggy back and trotting over to the steps.

He squeezed my hand before letting go and turning back to my mom. I crept up the steps slowly, watching him crunch back across the floor to her.

"Oh God." She whispered as he pulled her hand up to take a look. I could see the drops of blood on the edge of the table and the red stain spreading against the sleeve of her dress.

"Let me see."

"Sam.. I-." Her voice broke. "I didn't mean to-."

"Shh.. Let me see." His voice was the same calm soothing sound that had gotten me through every hard time I'd faced in my young life. "Yeah.. I'm gonna need to stitch that. I'll get the kit." He grabbed a handkerchief and wrapped it around her hand before looking over his shoulder at the floor. "And a broom."

Sam Axe moved my mother to the chair he'd just vacated next to Lucy.

"Hold this good. She really got herself good." He'd instructed the other woman before walking calmly over broken shards into the kitchen.

My mother put her head in her good hand and started to sob. Lucy presed one hand tightly around the now blood soaked cloth while rubbing the other through my mom's beautiful golden brown locks of hair while she wept. I crept up the stairs and helped Jesse pour cups of water over Maddox's head as he laughed hysterically.

…...

My mother needed twelve stitches. I know that because I counted as she slowly wrapped and unwrapped the expert banadge job as she sat on the edge of my bed. The cut was jagged and ugly. Her pale beautiful skin was red and blue and purple. Her fingers shook a little when she rolled over the edge. I wanted to tell her to stop hurting herself, but something told me that I shouldn't

She'd washed her face, but the red rims of her eyes and the way her hair hung in flat lifeless ropes from her head gave away just how long she'd sat downstairs and sobbed.

"I just wanted to talk to you about.." She pressed her lips together and looked around the bedroom. My uncle Nate had made a big show about how he put me in the prettiest room. I guess Francie and Lily would have really enjoyed it. It made me feel like the oblivious girl in a creepy horror film who doesn't know she's about to be killed by the thing in the closet. "It is a beautiful room isn't it?" She asked absently. I turned my face and fixed her with a long look. Her eyes met mine and she looked away. "Stop looking at me with your father's face." She sighed. "I'm getting to it."

"It's okay mom." I whispered. "I know you're no good at this."

It was something my Dad had told me maybe a thousand times, but by the way my mother's eyes dilated as they widened, I knew it meant something important. She shook her head before forcing a sad smile to her face.

"I'm a idiot, McBride." She sighed. "I keep thinking you're still a little girl."

"I am." I rolled my eyes at her. She shook her head.

"No. You're Michael Westen's daughter and I keep forgetting what that means." She winced when she pulled too quickly at the bandage, her eyes squeezing shut. I crept closer, laying my hand against my mother's and carefully rolled the bandage over her ugly injury. "You're Dad's going to kill me when he gets home." She smiled carefully before laying her fingers against my chin. "We'll get him back, Claire. I promise you."

"I know Mom." I told her honestly. She nodded at me, looking like she was little little girl that I actually was. I stood up and pulled back the blankets of the pretty bed. "Will you lay with me?"

She nodded again, looking a little stronger. I pulled her good hand and tucked her under the duvet before climbing over her small body with my own and laying my head carefully on her shoulder, wrapping my arms around her thin waist.

"When Daddy get's home?" She said softly lacing her non-injured fingers with mine. "I think we should stay here an extra couple of weeks. Like a vacation."

"That would be fun." I agreed. I stroked my thumb across my mother's palm like my father had always done to me, hoping he'd always done it to her too. I listened to her uneven breath in the quiet room until my mind started to drift into sleep.

"I love you, Claire."

Her voice reached me and my eyes popped open. It wasn't that my mother never said it. She did, but it was usually in laughter or triumph. Not in fear and desperation. Fiona Glenanne Westen (McBride) was not a person that showed weakness in a time of trouble.

"I know Mommy." I whispered, closing my eyes again moving her hair off of her cheek. "I love you too."

…...

"Fi?" Uncle Sam's voice woke me instantly, but my mom hadn't actually slept all night in a bed in weeks, so she didn't budge. My dad's best friend tried not to look as worried as he did.

"Did something happen to Daddy?" My voice was even. Very Westen like even then.

"It's alright Claire." He told me softly. "We're going to get him out." He looked back at my mother. "Fiona!" He said sharply and her body had shook once before coming alive. "Come on we have to go."

"What happened?" I scurried away as my mother bolted upright and Uncle Sam took her good hand and pulled her from the bed.

"We need to get you in there." He gave her a near panicked look. I'd never seen him look like that before and it scared me more than my traumatized mother and the broken glass. "Now."

She turned her face to me and spoke to me with her frightened face. I nodded and she leaned forward and kissed my forehead before Sam pulled her from the room.

…...


	10. The wife

When Michael finally decided to marry me it was summer in Miami.

He'd just come back from a long 'lunch' with Jesse. He'd been 'stateside' for a few weeks now, working a job in 'Texas' that I quickly realized was code for Havana. It had just wrapped up and he'd settled in for a visit.

I though that the 'lunch' was cover for a debrief on the last mission. So when he'd come home with intense eyes and passionate kisses, I'd been suspect, but I hadn't realized what was happening.

"Let's get everybody and go see Nate and the kids."

"What?" I screwed my face up at him.

"Vegas." His voice turned playful (that should have been my first clue) and he rocked me slowly from side to side.

"You are volunteering to go to Vegas to visit your brother?" I'd made a big show of feeling his forehead and neck for fever. He laughed again before pressing his mouth to mine.

Part of me knew that something was up. The faint touch of desperation in his kiss should have let me know that happy family time was over. That the days of him being gone for no more than a month an a half at a time were slowly drawing to a close. I would have figured it out too, I'm sure, but at that moment, Michael Westen did something that blew my mind.

He sunk to his knee and pulled out a ring.

"What are you doing?" I'd blinked at him.

"Making an honest woman out of you?"

"What are you-?

"Fiona.." He'd laughed, lightly shaking the ring box before looking back up at me. "Fi?"

I'd frozen for a second, my eyes must have done something though, because Michael's face softened and his own looked like he might have cried.

I nodded and he smiled with that amazing true Michael Westen smile. The one that made his eyes crinkle. The one that makes her want to forgo Vegas and pin him to the floor.

"You'll keep me?" He asked softly.

"Yes Michael." I'd pressed my lips to his as he stood up. "I'll keep you."

The day we'd returned from Nevada, Pyongyang had bombed Seoul and Korea had been plunged into war. Micheal was gone by the next morning. We didn't see him for nine months.

…...

"They released him into general population for an hour last night." Sam sighed, tugging my new disguise on over my mangled arm. "When Nate finally got to him Mike though he was hallucinating him."

Michael had been having a hell of a lot of hallucinations lately. I'd been watching them on closed circuit for the last eight days. I watched him struggle, cry and call out for me, squeezing my hands until my nails had dug into my palms. Sam had dragged me away with some story about Maddox asking for me.

I knew it was a story because Maddox had only been asking for Michael. Over and over and over. When I finally had sat down to play with my son I was eerily aware that he did not mention his father at all. That grated on me almost as much as his constant requests for him.

Was he forgetting Michael? Was Michael forgetting him?

"We need to get you in there before Larry moves him. He won't budge. Nate said the only time he'd even look at him was when he talked about you."

At least he hadn't forgotten me. That was something right?

"There is a nurse who is always right next to him when he's out of the room. Nate told him to ask to seek clergy. That's one of the rights of the center. Religious affiliations. A religious official can be left alone with a patient." Sam looked at me before pulling the habit over my hair. "Isn't he a genius? Mike would have been so damn proud of him if he thought he was real." He laughed a little. "Maybe that's why he didn't think he was real?" He looped a rosary around my neck and handed me a bible. "Lucy made a call and had one of her minions pick this up from God knows where. I don't know why we didn't use her more back in the day you know?" He stops and looks me over. "So Nate tells him to ask for clergy and like a good solider, Mike does. See Fi he's still in there. So they're all mumbling about how to find a priest and then, like a well oiled machine Virge just walks in and tells them he knows of a nun living a few miles away."

Sam grasped me by the shoulders and looked into my eyes.

"You gotta be calm Fiona. Nun-like." He warned. "Calm."

"I'll do my best." I tried to be singsong and coy, but all I could muster was a light hum. He sighed and I dropped my eyes away. "I'm tired Sam."

"Mikey needs you to be strong, Fi." He squeezed my shoulders. "You have to be strong. He expects you to be strong."

I swallowed and thought of my husband.

"Lets go."

…...

There was a small skirmish when I told them I would only see Michael in private. They almost called Larry. The giant nurse had pointed out Larry had on more than one occasion, very clearly stated no one was to be alone with Michael. Vigil stepped in and pointed out that Michael had a right to religious services that even his doctor could not decline.

He also added a few choice words about how he'd feel if he'd been woken in the middle of the night to okay something that didn't have to okay'ed. I'd simply opened my bible and bowed my head. Mostly too keep my eyes from burning holes in the staff's faces.

Virgil led me down the hall, I looked up at Nate when I walked by who stood nervously in his doorway. His 'doctor' smiled at him as he unlocked Michael's door and I slipped in. My husband sat with his back to the door. Something that in his right mind he wouldn't do.

"Michael." I whispered pulling the habit back from my face and reaching out carefully.

"Fi.." His voice was almost nonexistent, I strained to hear it. "Fiona."

It was a plea. One I knew well despite how infrequently he used it. When someone as strong as Michael Westen uses a tone like that with you, even a few times, you commit it to memory.

I laid my hands carefully on his back and he gasped, his shoulders raising, but he didn't turn around.

"Michael look at me." I coaxed sliding myself around to the face him. He shook his head.

"She's not here. She's not here.."

"Michael." I slid my hands against his cheeks and his face crumpled with a whine. My hands shook as I pressed my forehead to his. "Michael its okay now I really am here this time."

"Fiona.." He pleaded, his eyes shut tighter. "She's not here.. she's not.."

"Shh.." I pressed my lips between his eyes. "I am here."

"NO!" His hands came up suddenly, grasping roughly at my wrists. I gasped before a cry escaped my tight throat when he pulled at the stitches in my arm. Michael released me in an instant, something in his eyes flickering at my response.

I met his gaze. He took my arm and I tried not to yank it back. I watched him trace the bandage with his light appraising touch.

"I cut myself." I muttered, more defeated than I wanted to be shaking back the sleeve of my costume. "On a broken cup." His breathing quicken and I knew I should stop myself but I couldn't. "I did it right in front of Claire." This was not strong. This was not what Sam had prepped me for. It was not what my husband needed. I fought the pout of my lower lip. "I'm loosing my mind Michael." I sagged against him, my forehead dropping to his chin. "I need you to come back to me."

He was awkwardly still for a moment, except for the frantic movement of his chest. He kept hold of my arm as the other hand slid against my cheek in his signature move. I pulled back and looked at his face.

"Michael..?" His bottom lip trembled some what frantically before he pressed his forehead against mine.

"Fiona." He pleaded again. "I can't.."

"Larry's been drugging you. He's confused you." He whimpered dropping his head to the crook of my neck. I pressed my hand against the back of his head. "We have to get you out of here. We have to get you out of here before Larry comes back. Nate and Virgil are at the door and Sam's outside. You have to trust me." He sniffed abruptly releasing my wounded arm and wrapping his tightly around me. "You trust me right?" I pulled my head back. "Michael?"

He nodded into my shoulder, pulling me tighter.

"I've got you. It's okay. I'm right here." I cooed. "I'm here now."

I freed a hand and pressed the button on my bluetooth.

"Let's go. We need to get him out of here." I snapped.

"You got it Fi." Sam answered quickly. "Virge lets do this."

"We've rigged a small explosion. They're going to pull the fire alarm." I told him like I was talking to Maddox. "It's going to be loud." His arms loosening just a little. I cupped his face and he looked away. "The kids and I need you back Michael." I watched his eyes slip back to me. "I've missed you so."

He jumped like a caged animal when the detonator blew and the fire alarm started. I grabbed a hold of him and started towards the door. Virgil grasped Michael's other arm as we pushed through the crowd. Sam was flat against the side of the building when we slipped through the door. The staff was in full crisis mode counting each person as smoke poured from the empty cafeteria behind them.

"I have the two from solitary." Vigil informed them in french before moving Michael and Nate further from the crowd. The same big nurse who had fought with Virgil over religious visits followed quickly until Sam slipped from the side of the building and quietly dropped him like a rock.

"We gotta run. Larry's on his way. Nurse Terminator here must have tipped him off." He yelled grabbing Mike's other arm from me and yanking him towards the car.

Michael protested somewhat loudly until Sam and Nate practically picked him up. I didn't realize I'd stopped moving until Virgil put his hand against my back and started to push me forward.

A few moments later as Nate flew down narrow French streets while I sat in the back seat with my husband sobbing in my lap. Sam looked at me before rubbing his face as Michael whispered dates and cities I'd never heard of between body wracking chokes and sobs.

…...


	11. The best friend

Being Michael Westen's best friend has never been an easy job. This is what I was reminding myself as Nate and I carried him into the house and up the stairs into Fiona's bedroom. I dropped him in a chair and Fi immediately started pulling off his dirty clothes.

"He's freezing." She muttered rubbing his palm in hers.

"I think that's the least of his problems right now." I remind her reaching for my pen light and trying to get Mike's pupils to react. His body recoiled at the bright flash. "Sorry, Buddy."

"Sam?" His voice is what was really freaking me out the most. That far off, lost sound should never come from Michael Westen.

"Yeah, Brother. I'm here." I laid my hand against his foot and realized what Fiona was talking about. He was icy.

"I want to get him clean Sam." She breathed; I swallowed hard. I knew she meant the physical layer of dirt and sweat and vomit that was caked against his skin. I was far more worried about figuring out what the hell Larry had been injecting him with for weeks.

"Shower's warm." Nate breathed coming back into the room.

"When was the last time Jesse and Lucy checked in?" I asked Virgil, grasping Michael's arm and helping Nate pull him up. Fiona grabbed the chair from the small desk and pulled it into the shower as we sat him in it.

He started getting twitchy when Fi detached the shower head and started wetting him down.

"You want me to help you get his boxers off?" Nate asked, Fiona shook her head.

"Not yet. He's too keyed up. He'll freak out." She ran her hand over Michael's damp face, shushing him. His eyes lulled towards her and he stilled. I backed up to the door and looked at Virgil.

"How long?" I reminded him. Acutely aware of Jesse's absence.

"Right after Larry left his lair." He said worriedly.

"I shouldn't be here." Michael's voice lifted from the shower stall. "I couldn't.." His voice raised again.

"Hey Bro it's okay.. It's okay." Nate soothed.

"You are not really here. Nate is not really here!" He was shouting now, his arm flailing.

"Mike. Calm down.."

"Michael relax!" Fiona gave an order and Michael's yelling stopped. "Relax." She soothed. "Relax. I'm here."

"He shouldn't be here." Michael implored in his most expressive tone. "Nate shouldn't be-." I moved forward in an attempt to help, just in time to see Claire's face peer around the bathroom door.

"Claire." My voice stopped all action in the room immediately.

"Claire." Michael repeated softly. I turned my head to look at him. His eyes bored into Fiona's. "Claire.. shouldn't..Claire.."

I moved back to the door and put my hands on the little girl's shoulders.

"Let's go back to-."

"I want to see him." She looked at me with her father's face. The face that said _don't argue with me, you'll loose_.

"Claire now is not-." I began sharply.

"I want to see him." She repeated, her chin shaking. Claire was not a argumentative child. Especially not with me.

"Claire should not be here. She should not be-." Michael's voice made me wince and Claire's head snap to the door. "Fiona! Claire should not be here!

"Shh.. It's alright. We're safe. We're-." Her reasurance ended with a surprised yelp as he stood up and backed her against the wall of the shower.

"Hey! Hey! Bro!" Nate snapped. "Whoa. Hey!"

Virgil's eyes widened before he pushed towards the shower stall.

"Daddy?" The fear in her voice snapped me back to her as she tried to follow Virgil past me.

"Claire!" I yelped moving forward just in time to see Michael fling his arm and send Nate crashing against the wall.

"Daddy!"

"Claire!" Fiona was pressed between Michael and the wall. His hands pressed against her slim shoulders. I wrapped my arms around Claire and lifted her against my chest. Virgil moved forward to pull Michael off her. "No! No! He won't hurt me! Don't touch him!" She turned her eyes back to her husband. "You won't hurt me. I won't let them touch you."

"Daddy." Claire whimpered as I lugged her down the hall and into Maddox's bedroom. Larry stood in the doorway holding Maddox. "What's wrong with him?"

"I tried to grab her!" Barry yelled. "I didn't want to get to close with the baby."

"Stay here!" I yelled as I dropped Claire on the bed. I pointed my finger at her and she started to cry. I'd never raised my voice to her once in her ten years. "You will not leave this room again! Do you understand me?" She nodded and I grabbed her shoulders tightly. "Do you understand me, Claire?"

"Yes." She choked. I nodded back, brushing the back of my hand against the tears on her face before looking at Maddox who had started to howl.

"Lock the door this time." I muttered to Barry on my way back down the hall.

By the time I made it back to the bathroom Michael was back in the chair, shaking under Fiona's wash cloth. She sniffed back tears as Nate held him in place.

"Sam what the hell did they give him?" She pleaded looking at me in desperation.

"I-" I looked from her to Mike and back. Virgil jogged back into the room.

"Jesse just called." He held up my phone. "They got him."

"Were the drugs on him?" I asked quickly.

"Scopolamine and Diphenhydramine." Virgil shook his head. "I don't know how he's even alive, Sam."

"Damn." I breathed. "Damn."

…...

"You guys alright?" I hollered as Jesse stormed up from the basement.

"Yeah. How's Mike?"

"Not good." I rubbed my face.

"I wouldn't think so." He held up a black bag before spilling it out on the dinning room table. "It's like psychological warfare in convenient shot form. This stuff's nasty Sam. The Russian's used to use this stuff back in the day."

"You got that scumbag secure down there?'

"Yeah. Lucy's got a few of her minions down there guarding him." Jesse rolled his eyes. "We need to get this to Fi. She's gotta get to work figuring out just how strong this stuff is."

"No. Fi's busy we're gonna have to do it ourselves."

"Sam, she's the chemist we're just-."

"She's busy." I said flatly.

"He that bad off?"

"Worse." I rubbed my face again and Jesse looked at me.

"Damn." He tapped at the table top, causing the syringes to shake lightly. "You wanna go down and take a crack at Larry?"

"Right now I'd probably kill him. So I'll pass." I glanced back up the stairs. "I need to get Mike started on IV fluids.."

"G1 proteins." Jesse reminded me. "I'll see if Lucy can hook us up."

"Thanks man."

"He'll be okay. We'll get him straight." Jesse told me honestly, catching my gaze and holding it. "Sam?"

"Claire saw him push Fiona."

"Damn.." Jesse breathed.

"I don't even have time to explain it to her. I just yelled and locked her in a room with Barry." I groaned.

"You want me to talk to her?" He looked up the steps.

"After you finish your chemistry experiment." I pointed to the table. "I'll send Virgil to help you."

…...

"Just hold his arm still." I sighed to Nate, looking back up at Michael. "This is gonna make you feel much better brother, I promise."

"Sam's going to fix this." Fiona pressed her hand against his chest while pushing the other through his still damp hair. "You're not thinking clearly right now."

"Larry.." His voice croaked out of his dry throat.

"Don't you worry about that." I ordered. "Jesse's got that under control. You just hang tight. I'm gonna stick you Mikey."

"No." His eyes flashed from me to Fiona. "Don't let him. Fiona. Don't let Larry-."

"It's Sam. Remember? Sam's going to help you. Just breathe." She leaned closer. "I won't let Larry anywhere near you."

"Fi. He's coming ba-."

"Then I'll shoot him." She told him evenly, her wide eyes looming over his. She'd realized that she needed to be very close if he had any hope of focusing on her face. "You know I will."

He closed his eyes in agreement as she gripped his shoulders. I nodded at Nate and sunk the needle into Michael's arm.


	12. The man himself

I've worn many persona's in my day, but I think with a few minor and extremely temporary exceptions, I've always been able to figure out who I really was. The man that I really am. But in the first few hours of the day in question, I had no idea.

My mind was dizzy. People, both real and imagined floated in and out of my blurred vision. That's all I remember about the first few hours after my team plucked me from Larry's personal playroom. Time seemed to be on a loop, things happening and re happening in no particular order. I don't remember hitting my brother, or pushing my wife, but I do remember a pair of fearful yet determined eyes boring into mine. I remember her words, shot at me like a necessary order.

_You will not hurt me. _

I remember knowing that was the truth, but not knowing completely why she had to announce it to me. Sam was there. Larry, assuring me none of it was real at all. Several pissed off Serbians. Tom Strickler of all people, blood still dripping down his smooth shirt. Vaughn was laughing like a lunatic. My father was sitting disapprovingly in a chair next to my Mom who was chain smoking while complaining about what mess I was. Nate was there too, unsure and worried. I knew Virgil was someone I knew, but I couldn't place him. My daughter, crying in fear. And then My wife, unyielding, unshakable Fiona.. telling me she was loosing her mind.

There was a lot of that going around.

...

When my eyes opened again and a moment of clarity seemed to sink in with the waves of nausea and vertigo, I had no idea where I was.

It was nicer than the place Larry had me in, and something was distinctly familiar about the crumpled heap against my shoulder with her long slender arm laying across my chest like a seat belt.

"Fi." I breathed almost unconsciously into her hair. She made a startled noise before her hand slipped up to my neck and onto my cheek.

"Michael?" She sat up slowly and I grasped her wrist as she did, swallowing at the shake of the mattress beneath us. "Hi."

"Hi." I tried again to wet my dry mouth as a worried smile came to her face. "How you doing?"

"The rooms spinning." I admitted.

"Take deep breaths." She reached over her shoulder and pulled a cup from somewhere, and I caught site of the bandage on her arm. "Little sips."

I lifted my fingers to it and she flinched away, our eyes met.

"Fi?"

"It's okay. Just stitches." She shrugged, lowering the straw to my chapped lips. "Little sips."

I complied, pulling my left hand up to her shoulder.

"Careful. Sam put in the IV.." She cautioned.

"What the hell happened?"

"What do you remember?" She countered.

"Fiona." I whined laying my hand on my spinning head and fighting down the churning in my stomach.

"Michael." She kept her eyes steely still and I knew I wasn't going to win.

"The car." I squinted before my eyes widened. "The kids?"

"Asleep two rooms down." She stopped me. "After the car?"

"Larry.. and a.. hospital.. And a whole bunch of other stuff that doesn't make sense."

My stomach tightened and my legs drew up enough to catch my wife's attention. Her hand pressed gently against my abs, rubbing softly.

"Slow breaths." She reminded. I shut my eyes and tried to block out the soft movements of the room.

"What did he give me?" This was not my first bout with drug withdrawal. I knew what it felt like and this was defiantly it.

"We'll talk about it later." She said softly, I felt her lean away and then settle back. My eyes opened when I realized she was fiddling with the tubing.

"Don't knock me out." I moaned.

"You need to rest." She told me evenly.

"Fiona do not knock me-." There was so much to do, so many questions left to ask. Something big had happened and I needed to know what that was.

"Let us man the ship for a while Michael you're in no condition to lead anyone anywhere."

"You had to say ship." I teased. "Now you can't complain when I get sea sick and puke on your shoes."

"Nonsense. After the last few weeks I can complain as much as I want. And you have nothing left in you to puke anyway." I listened to her sing song voice.

"Don't leave." It was desperate and unlike me, but she didn't miss a beat.

"Not a chance." She whispered, her cool hands soothing my dry hot skin. I closed my eyes. "You're stuck with me."

…...

"-under 102. It's been 24 hours."

"Maybe if we would have been able to get something stronger."

"He was lucid." Fiona's voice was getting loud, sure sign she was starting to loose it.

"The diphenhydramine is out of his system by now. This is the withdrawal from the Scopolamine and what ever the hell else Larry's little stint playing doctor introduced to his system. He's still really dehydrated." Sam. The other voice was Sam.

"What the hell do we do now?" Fiona huffed, her hands moved against my cheeks before she ran a damp towel up my chest. I hissed at the cold and she jumped slightly. "Michael?"

I laid my hand on hers, swiping my thumb against her palm.

"Michael can you open your eyes?"

"Do I have to?" I croaked.

"No." She whispered. "I just wanted to make sure you could."

"I can." I smiled, my lips cracked and Fiona, psychically smoothed lip balm on them.

"How 'bout some ice chips, Buddy?" Sam asked softly.

"Yeah." I swallowed hard. "Think so."

"Sit up." Fiona touched my shoulder and I cracked open my eyelids and looked at her. Wincing at her still pale face.

"Did you eat?" I rasped.

"Yes Michael." She sighed, filling a spoon with ice and offering it to me.

"Did she eat Sam?" I asked, mouth full of ice.

"Mixed berry, Mikey. I watched her like a hawk."

"You're a good man Sam Axe." I sighed, Fiona appraised me softly.

"See Fi?" Sam raised an eyebrow but didn't look up from the IV site he was studying. "He's thinking clearer already."

"Yeah." She didn't look relived.

"Hey he's up." The voice from the door way made me jump, then wince. Fiona winced with me as I waited for the pain in my body to subside. "Sorry."

"You really are here?" I muttered looking up at my brother. "I thought I hallucinated you."

"Yeah, hallucinations don't bruise Bro. You got a really mean left hook." He laughed, pointing to the blue mark on the side of his face before taking another step into the room.

"I hit you?" My eyes widened.

"Yeah well better me than Fi." Nate sighed.

"I hit you?" I looked at my wife.

"Would you be alive if you hit me?" She asked back.

"Will you answer my question?"

"You were out of your mind Michael." She breathed smoothing out my hair. "But not _that_ out of your mind."

"Something obviously happened-."

"Michael you've had a fever over 102 for a full day, your body's been through hell. Mentally you've been through the ringer and it was just a push. You pushed me. I'm over it."

"Humm." It was suddenly all I could muster. Something else was on the edge of it but I wasn't sure what. "Why can't I remember?"

"Zombie drug." Nate replied helpfully, dropping onto the end of the bed. I grunted when I bounced.

"He gave me Scopolamine?"

"Yes." Fi said sharply shooing my brother from the bed. "And Diphenhydramine, and what ever virus he managed to introduce you to along the way. So how about you all clear out so that Michael can rest instead of playing twenty questions, okay?"

"Yes Ma'am." Sam said smartly before tugging my brother out the door. "Don't forget to flush my tubing or you're putting in the next line."

I watched my wife's face carefully as she pushed Sam's heprine flush into my arm before sighing.

"What about you?" I whispered.

"What about me Michael?" She looked everywhere but at me. Never a good sign.

"You should rest too." I coaxed, reaching out and brushing my fingertips against her arm before she pulled it away again, fiddling with the bandage. "I didn't do that too, did I?"

"No I did that." Her voice dropped lower and she looked at the floor. "I broke a mug."

"On purpose?" I guessed and she swallowed hard.

"On purpose." Her voice shook a little and I bit back the urge to apologize for getting kidnapped.

"I'm gonna be okay." I reminded her softly.

"This time." She sniffed. "I knew this would happen though. I knew that-."

"Fiona." I closed my dry eyes, feeling the burning of my hot eyelids against them. "Let's not start the argument up again okay?"

"I haven't been that scared in a very long time Michael." I listened to her breathing quicken, watched her profile as she bit at the edges of her lip. "I didn't know what to do. I didn't know how to help you."

"Come here." I whispered, reaching out again.

"I didn't know what to tell the children. I didn't know how I was going to make it through the day." She ranted, her head shaking back and forth.

"Fiona come here." My command was more firm this time.

"I thought that part of our lives was over. I thought it was safe to-." She shook her head again and I painfully pushed myself up off the mattress and grabbed her good arm. She tried to pull away for a second until I wrapped my other arm around her waist and pulled her back against me. "I didn't know what to do!"

"Shh.. shh." I buried my face in the nape of her neck. Pieces of auburn hair brushed across my face and worked their way between my lips. "I'm here. I'm here."

"You weren't." She was crying when I finally wrestled her back to the mattress and she rolled to face me. "You were gone Michael. You promised me you'd never leave me again and then you were just gone."

"I know. I know and I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." I cupped her face in my hands and her fists clenched at my bare chest. "I wouldn't have gone willingly Fiona. I wouldn't have. Not for anything."

She sobbed and I pulled her tight against me and let her.

"I'm back now. I'm here." I told her softly once her breathing returned to normal slow even breaths.

"You're shaking." The concern in her voice was back.

"You're freezing." I commented, rubbing at her shoulders.

"You're burning up." She sighed. "I should get Sam."

"In a minute." I ignored the chattering of my teeth and snuggled into her a little more. I'd clearly used up all my reserve breaking Fiona down and she knew it. Her lips pressed against my forehead.

…...

"Fever's down." Sam muttered, reaching over where Fiona lay to check my pupils. "Eye's aren't sensitive to light."

"They don't feel like sandpaper anymore either." I rubbed at them, thankful for the moisture.

"How's the stomach? You up for a blueberry yogurt?" I thought about it for a minute before nodding.

"Larry still alive down there?" I asked as Sam handed me the plastic container.

"Yep." He didn't ask me how I knew Larry was in the basement. He just accepted the fact that I did. I loved that about Sam Axe.

"Saving him for me?" I raised an eyebrow, scooping out a biteful of yogurt and licking it carefully off the spoon.

"Nah. We figure if anyone gets to shoot him? It's Fi." I chuckled, looking at my sleeping wife for a few minutes before looking back at my best friend.

"Seriously Sam. We've let him go too many times before."

"Jesse's working on it." He told me quickly. "You just sit tight. Eat your yogurt and let Fiona take care of you."

At the sound of her name the body next to me stirred, her hand gripping my waist a little tighter. I dropped my hand against her back and brushed it in soothing strokes before taking another bite of yogurt.

"If you're good I'll let you spend tomorrow explaining to Claire that you're all better."

"Claire." I sighed, pulling the spoon from my mouth. I was hoping the memory flashes I'd had of her were as fake as the ones I had about my parents. "She saw me."

"Yep. And you put on a good show." His voice was serious. "Jesse and I have both talked to her, but I don't think she'll really put it to rest until she see's you. So you should probably get some sleep."

He stood up and looked me over one more time before wheeling away the IV pole and tossing most of the supplies. He reached for my empty yogurt tub and plastic spoon before tossing them too.

I watched him lumber around the room, making sure he'd accomplished everything he needed too.

"Sam?" My voice was serious and he stopped in his tracks, turning his body back to me slowly.

"Yeah Brother?"

"Thanks." I whispered. He gave me a sincere look before raising his eyebrows.

"I'd say anytime but I think Fi would wake up and kill me." He chuckled before making his way out the door. "Get some sleep."

He turned off the light and I slid down next to Fiona's tiny form and kissed her cheek.

"Michael?" .

"Hi." I smiled as her eyes slipped open.

"You alright?" Her hand slid onto my neck and I took it in my own.

"Everything's fine." I assured her dropping another kiss on her forehead. "It's fine now."

…...


	13. the man he burned

...

If someone had told me in the beginning that the man that burned me would become someone I trusted more than anyone else, I'd have laughed. If I they would have told me that I'd meet my wife saving his sorry ass from the undead? Well.. I might have called in the professionals.

But I'm pretty sure the moment I shook hands with Lucy Chen? I knew that it was meant to be.

"He still asleep?" Lucy nodded slowly, lulling her head back against the chair. "You asleep too?"

She smiled softly at my playful tone before turning, her eyes widening in surprise.

I smiled back, setting my bags in the chair while I moved the large shipping box between us.

"I do know that this is not.." I looked around before covering the wooden crate with a table cloth from the kitchen and carefully pulling out the two styrofoam containers. "The ideal location for a first date."

Lucy's eyes widened and she turned her head towards Larry who was bound to a cot Sam and I had welded to the floor. He let out a long snore and I rolled my eyes.

"Not exactly a string quartet." Lucy raised her perfect eyebrow at me.

"I got real French cuisine." I balked, pouring her a glass of wine.

"Where ever did you find that in France?" She bat her eyelashes.

"You know I'm trying really hard to play it cool here, and you are not helping me." I raised my glass.

"To our successful mission?" She asked softly. I nodded, pulling my glass back at he last minute.

"And many more?" I added.

"Many more." She smiled, casting her eyes towards the floor.

…...

"Hey there little Westen!" I exclaimed.

Lucy stopped giggling when I leaned her against the wall, blinking her eyes rapidly as if that was going to make her look less drunk. We'd finished off the bottle of wine and started another after Virgil and Sam relieved us from guard duty. I looked down at the half empty bottle before shoving it clumsily behind my back.

"What are you..?" I cleared my throat. "What are you doing up so late young lady?"

Lucy crossed her arms and nodded at me before looking at Claire. Mike and Fi's little girl looked at us with a blank look that could rival her dad's anyday.

"It's nine thirty." She told us softly.

"Well but.. it's been a long day.. and we don't know how long tomorrow's going to be so-." I pointed towards her bedroom.

"Okay." She whispered before craning her head to look behind me. "You're bottles spilling."

"Oh!" Lucy grabbed at it pulling it upright as it splashed against my leg.

"Wow. Okay. So. I was just saying.. goodnight.. to Miss Lucy.." I turned and looked at her with a sigh. "Good Night Miss Lucy."

"Goodnight Agent Porter." She sang softly before smiling at Claire. "Miss Westen."

"It's still kind of weird hearing that." The little girl hummed as I watched longingly as Lucy shut the door to her bedroom.

"What?" I asked absently, turning back to her.

"Westen." She said softly as I pushed the door to her bedroom open. She climbed onto the bed and hugged her knees.

Most of the time Claire looked just like Michael. She had his coloring, his dark hair and overly expressive almond eyes. Right now however, knobby knees drawn up under her chin and long lanky arms wrapped around herself, she looked just like Fiona.

I suddenly remembered six and a half year old Claire at the airport. Her mother's slender fingers gripping her shoulders.

"_Promise me, McBride. Say it."_

"_I promise Mommy." She'd whispered. _

"_If someone even says Westen.. you pretend like you never heard the name before. Then you go someplace else and you call one of us. You hear me? Call one of us right away." _

"I've been Claire McBride for over three years." She pressed her lips against her leg. "I don't know who I'm going to be next. Or where. Do you think we'll go back to Grandma's now?"

I raised an eyebrow. The last time I'd been by Madelyn's old lot the grass had grown where the house had once sat. There was a big sign out front touting the home that the builders where willing to build there.

"I don't know." I told her honestly, thinking about it for the first time. "I just figured you'd go back to Guernsey."

"You never know with them." She shrugged.

"Them?"

"My family." She raised her eyebrows.

"Claire.. did you get a chance to talk to your Dad yet? See how he's feeling?"

"Yeah. Me, Maddox and Mom made him tuna tataki for lunch." She straightened out her legs.

"Sounds nice."

"Yeah."

"He's doing a lot better, don't you think?" I'd spent a few hours that first night explaining to Claire about drugs and what they can do to a person. I explained (a few times) that in his right mind, her father would never hit Nate, or push her mother. No one in their right mind would push _her_ mother.

"Yeah, 'cept he still gets tired really quick. And Mom still looks like he's going to disappear."

"Yeah, well. Your mom's still a little shaken up. She'll be okay." I looked around the room, my eyes falling on a few stacked books. "You want me to.. read to you or something?" She blinked her eyes at me like I was crazy before looking back at her legs. "Or not." I smiled sliding off the chair by the door. If I hurried I might still get back to Lucy before she passed out.

"Jesse?" I spun on my heals and looked at the little girl. "Could you.. _tell_ me a story? About Grandma?"

My mouth hung open a minute before I nodded. I settled on the end of her bed.

"You know your dad used to call us Bonnie and Clyde?" I chuckled.

…...

I was just sneaking away from a sleeping ten year old when I heard her parents in the hall.

"It's not a race." Fiona hissed followed by a thud that could have woken the dead, but apparently not a child. I slid out the door just in time to help Fi right Michael against the wall.

"Shh.. I just got Claire to bed." I muttered.

"Is she alright?" Michael asked breathlessly, trying not to look as battered as he was. His wife ran her hand over his face and the welt that was quickly forming.

"Better than you." I jabbed. "But I don't think you ending up sprawled in front of her bedroom door will help her out right now."

"I'm fine." Michael lied.

"He somehow convinced me that he was ready to go downstairs." Fiona shook her head.

"_Downstairs_ downstairs?" I groaned. "Are you nuts?'

"Well he was very convincing!" Fiona whined.

"Shh." I pointed towards the bedroom door and she clamped her eyes shut. "You're not going down there Mike."

"I'm fi-."

"You just dented the wall with your face." I snorted. "You're going back to bed."

He set his jaw and I led him back to the room he'd spent the last three days in. Fiona stood motionless against the wall.

"You too Mrs. Westen." I ordered in an exaggerated whisper, sticking my head out the door again. "We're not ready for you down there either."

She nodded, chewing at her lip.

"I just need a minute." She breathed, pushing her hands against the stair railing with her back to me.

"Hey Fi, Nate and Barry were playing cards in the sitting room when I came up about an hour ago. If you need longer than a minute..." She shook her head and I watched her wipe her eyes. "I'll keep Mike company."

"Maybe for a few minutes." She sighed.

"Sure thing." I ducked back into the room and studied Michael. He was drapped back over the bed with his elbow over his eyes. "How longs it been since you slept man?"

"I slept for like fifteen days Jesse I think I'm good." He muttered.

"It's a side effect, sleeplessness. Of the Scopolamine..."

"I know."

"I'm sure you also know that if you don't sleep? Fi won't sleep." He opened and eye at me. "And let me tell you? While you were knocked out for all that time? She wasn't. Lucy found her passed out in the shower one night. She's running on fumes Man."

"Don't you think I see that?" He huffed.

"Then settle the hell down and let us take care of Larry for a while. He's not going anywhere."

"I'm sick of laying here doing nothing." He snapped back.

"Yeah? Well how 'bout spending some more time with your kids? Cause I totally missed out on-. Well I missed out on _something_ tonigh,t because Claire was wandering the halls wondering where she's going to live after this and when her parents are going to stop acting like they've been replaced by pod people." Michael looked up at me, his mouth drawn into a straight serious line.

"Yeah." He sighed, his eyes clicking shut.

"Guys?" We both jumped a little, turning to face Barry standing in the doorway. "Fi's asleep against the wall in the hall. I was going to wake her but I was afraid she'd knock the shit out of me."

Michael grunted softly and looked like he was going to try the hall sprint again.

"I got it." I put up my palms, moving out the door. "Just.."

Fiona's back was wedged in the corner of the stairs and the wall.

"Don't hurt me woman." I groaned as I lifted her into my arms and carried her back into the bedroom. Barry helped Mike pull back the blankets on the bed as I settled her next to him. "You two gotta get your shit together here." I decided, following Barry back to the door. "Seriously. We gotta make some moves... soon."

"Yeah." I watched him study his wife for a few seconds before he pulled the comforter up to her neck. "Thanks man."

"Barry's gonna get you some ice for your head." I informed both of them, slapping the money man on the back as I walked by. "I'm going to bed. Alone."

I made my way down the hall and pulled my own bedroom door open. Tugging off my shirt, I closed it and exhaled into the pitch darkness. I unzipped my pants and let them fall away before reaching for the lamp by the bed and pulling it on.

"That must have been some 'tucking in' Agent Porter."

I froze when Lucy's voice hit my ears, looking up slowly at where she lay on the bed.

"Well you know.. I aim to please." I stammered.

"Care to show me your.. techniques?" She said smoothly, stretching out a bare leg from under one of my nicer shirts.

"Why yes.. yes Miss Chen. I think that would be possible." I hummed sliding across the bed and kissing her for the first time.

Even then, I think I knew I would never kiss another woman again.


	14. The money man

_A/N: Forgot Barry in the first rotation.. so here he is now.. he's been with the other invisable character.. three year old Maddox Glenanne Westen (McBride). Used all my 'mom of a two year old' frustration here. :)_

..

People tend to forget I'm here, until they need someone to hide their cash, or track someones assets. For the most part, I'm the guy in the background when stuff's really happening. Being Michael's launder always kind of scared the crap out of me anyway, but Mike's a good friend to have. So when Nate called and told me he was in a bind? I showed up at the air strip. To have good friends means you have to be a good friend, right?

So apparently, I was brought here to be the Nanny. Or that's how I seem to be spending most of my days. Not that I'd rather be guarding Larry the psychopath, but if I have to watch one more children's video? I might turn into a psychopath myself.

"Not sure I get this buddy." I sighed, looking down at Maddox who sat slurping yogurt from one of those nasty little tubes that make everything all sticky. "I mean, you'd think they would have developed a more sophisticated communications system by now. And I'm having a hard time understanding why the spice shakers can talk but not the dog. I mean the whiny cat can talk.. why can't the dogs? Is that a kangaroo? Seriously? The Kangaroo can chat it up but the dog has to lead the guy around leaving paw prints all over the place in order to ask for some juice?"

The toddler lifted his eyes to me, pressing his chubby finger against his lips and shushed me before going back to his program.

I arched my eyebrows and sighed.

"The mail box can freaking sing like one of the Three Tenors but the dog-."

"Bare. I think you may need to get out of this room a little more often." Sam's voice makes me jump.

"Yeah." I rubbed my eyes as Sam lifted Maddox off the bed and shook him over his head.

"And maybe try some Max and Ruby or Bob the Builder or something. It's a little less.. tedious." He made a face at the TV. "Me and this big guy and his Mommy are going to go for a walk. Wanna go for a walk with Mommy?"

The three year old nodded emphatically.

"Okay." Sam whispered, looking back at me. "Lucy made a big breakfast downstairs. You should get down there a dig in before Nate gets up." I stretched before standing and turning off the TV. "Oh and Barry? Jesse wanted me to thank you, for helping with Fiona last night."

"Yeah.. all I did was almost trip over her." I yawned. "What kinda breakfast are we talking about here?"

"Eggs, french toast, bacon, fruit, the works." Sam smiled. "I'm telling you buddy, get down there before Nate."

…...

Lucy's breakfast was immaculate, judging by the content sighs and long looks between her and Agent Porter? I'm guessing her night was too.

"This is the best I've eaten since we got here." I praised through my full mouth.

"It's the best I think I've eaten in years." Jesse moaned in pleasure.

"Nate, I bet you're mom cooked big breakfasts like this for you guys all the time!" Lucy grinned. The rest of us chuckled.

"Shows what you know." Virgil teased. "My Madelyn was a lot of things... but a good cook was not one of them."

"Fi coulda used Ma's eggs to blow something up." Nate shook his head.

"I think I did use her homemade apple cider once." Fiona sighed, she pulled a scarf over her head as she, Maddox and Sam tramped through the dinning area on the way to the door. She looked like Audrey Hepburn, under her dark oversized sun glasses.

"Claire's not going with you?" Jesse asked casually his eyes bouncing from Sam to Fi.

"She's keeping an eye on her dad for us." Sam answered, putting his hand on Fiona's back and ducking so that the child on his shoulders would clear the door frame. "We'll be back."

"Bye Buddy." I called as Maddox waved back at me before Sam trotted him away.

"How'd he get Fi away from Mike?" Nate asked, raising an eyebrow at Jesse.

"Who knows how Sam does half the things he does." Jesse rolled his eyes and took another bite of toast. "I think they're talking about what comes next."

"What does come next?" Nate Westen looked around the room slowly. "I mean, I love my brother, but am I the only one with a life to get back to?"

"No. I got clients waiting at home. And not to mention spending winter in the french countryside isn't on my bucket list." I agreed.

"We can't hold Larry captive in the basement forever." Virgil raised and lowered his eyebrows, before looking at Jesse. "How long you been off the grid?"

"Since we found Mike."

"How long before your people send out a search party?" Lucy asked, reaching her arm across the table and laying her hand on his.

"I'm gonna need to check in here soon." He agreed.

I looked towards the steps and hoped that Mike was starting to figure that out.

…...


	15. The might have been stepfather

I would have been a good step father to Mike and Nate. I know that Mike had his doubts about my.. intentions.. towards his Mama.. but Maddy was something special.

Sometimes, I'd go back and rewrite the past. I'd imagine that I met Madelyn right after I got out of the Navy and not Suzanne. I'd imagine that she'd have taken one look at me and left Frank and that I could have helped her raise the boys. I imagine her as my daughter Melody's mother. I hope my girl would say I was a good father. I tried my best, and she turned out pretty damn good. So I feel like I'd have done a decent job with them.

In my fantasies, my Madelyn would have stopped smoking like a chimney in the eighties with the rest of us and God willing she'd be here to enjoy these sweet grand babies of hers.

But it wasn't meant to be I guess.

...

I was nominated as the guy to talk to Sam and Fiona when they returned from their walk. I gotta say I wasn't looking forward to it. I slowly rinsed each plate before handing it to Barry who methodically put it in the dishwasher.

"Ms. Chen?" The walkie-talkie made us all jump about two feet in the air, but Lucy recovered first, pressing the side of her radio and calling her minion back. She'd asked us all days ago to stop calling them her minions, but we'd all promptly ignored her.

"Yes?"

"Ma'am you wanted to know when our guest was awake." She looked slowly around the room before her eyes settled on Jesse. "He is awake now Ma'am."

"Thank you." She put down the sponge she'd been cleaning the table off with and made her way across the tiles. "Care to join me Agent Porter?"

"Yes Ma'am." Jesse set the broom against the wall and hurried down the steps after her.

"What's there to even say?" Nate rubbed his face. "I mean, they're going to kill him right?"

"Probably not. I can't see your brother allowing that. Even if it's what Fiona would prefer." I hummed looking back at Nate. "Jesse'll probably turn him over to his people."

"And they'll kill him?" Nate mused, his eyebrows arched.

"They'll drop him in a hole some where, make sure he never gets out." I corrected, drying off my hands and joining him at the table. "Those two are just trying to make sure he was a one man show. Make sure it's safe for your brother to take his family home."

"I'm pretty sure they blew home up like three years ago." Maddy's youngest looked up at the ceiling. "He'll take them back to Guernsey."

"They seem to like it there don't you think?" I asked, looking at Barry.

"Sam and Fi were bringing in good money." He shrugged and nodded.

"What the hell is my brother doing though? Going nuts I'm sure."

"He's got the book." Barry muttered.

"The what?" Nate and I both looked at the round headed man at the same moment.

"Mike's writing a book." He looked between us. "You didn't know?"

We both shook our heads.

"Spy novel." He chuckled. "Cliche huh? He's got a publisher buddy of mine all excited. It's gonna be the next Tom Clancy or something. We'll the next Chuck Finely anyway."I laughed out loud and Barry held his palms up. "Sam insisted if he was going to be the 'official author' then he was gonna use his trusty cover."

"He's been using that thing for decades!" I chuckled. Nate joined me before shaking his head slowly.

"My brother's writing a spy novel." He grinned. "Barry, I think you just gave me enough to harass him for the rest of our lives!"

…...

"I thought you understood that.." Michael's voice was soft, and that's why I stopped before knocking on the half open door. "That we couldn't go back. Not to Miami"

"I guess." Claire sighed. "But we could go to Navada, right? To be close to Uncle Nate."

"Claire," He sighed. "You understand that people can't know that I'm alive." He paused and I imagined the little girl nodding. "If I start coming around Uncle Nate and someone realizes I'm Michael Westen.."

"Like they guy in basement did?" She whispered.

I rolled my eyes before dropping my head against the wall.

"Baby Girl, how did you know there was someone in the basement?"

"I am Michael Westen's daughter you know." She whispered. "Mom told me, while you were gone, that she keeps forgetting what that means."

"What does it mean?" Michael's voice was heartbreaking.

"It means that stuff happens to you that doesn't usually happen except in the movies." She exhaled slowly. "It means you have to notice stuff that normal people don't."

"Like when your family's hiding someone in the basement." Michael said flatly.

"Or when your mom's trying to hide her assault rifle under your girl scout cookies." She added. Michael scoffed. "It was an emergency. Uncle Sam couldn't get it through Chunnel security because the guy didn't believe the picture on his false dock was him!"

"His false-." Michael grunted before taking deep breath. "I never wanted this life for you Claire. It's part of the reason it took your mom and me so long to have kids."

"I like my life." The little girl's voice was strong and defiant like her mothers. "Up until the you getting kidnapped part."

"Your Daddy's gonna try real hard to make sure that doesn't happen again." I added, moving into the room.

"Yeah." Michael sighed before his eyes met mine. I looked at Claire again before sitting down on the chair near the bed. "How bout you go see if there's any more blueberry yogurt for me?"

She nodded before pulling out of his embrace and heading down the stairs.

"Not really what you imagined when you blew up your Mama's house was it?" I quipped, he didn't say anything. "She's a good girl, Mike. You did good."

"Yeah." He sighed. "What's up, Virge?"

"Sam and Fiona just got back, they're talking to Jesse then the four of us are gonna have a long chat about what comes next."

…...

"How sure are they?" Michael asked stubbornly.

"Mikey when have you ever known Larry to work with someone? _Besides_ you." Sam asked raising an eyebrow. "And wasn't that kinda the point of all this? He wanted you back as a partner?"

"It's not the kind of thing you can be half sure about." Westen grumbled.

"Michael do you honestly think Jesse and Lucy would have given us the all clear if they didn't think it was all clear?" Fiona snapped. "It's clear. Not that it matters if you can't keep your hands out of our business."

"Your business almost got you killed, Fi." He whispered.

"No actually your business did." She accused, he shot her a look of betrayal. "This was about you. Not me."

"Fi and I _are_ careful Mike." Sam's words defused the tense air around us. "Really careful. About who and what we help with. We have been for a long time. That's why I was so unprepared when the job went south. We don't run in those kinds of circles."

"Your psycho of a mentor laid out a trail of breadcrumbs for you and you followed it with perfection." Fiona was on a roll now.

"Careful now. He thought he was doing a good thing." I added, starting to feel more than a little sorry for Mike.

"He knew the risks. He knew them." She shook her head. "But he just couldn't help play spy!"

"That's not fair." Michael whispered.

"Admit it Michael!" She said harshly, cocking her head. "You miss it."

Beside me I could hear the man's breath quicken almost immediately to an unsteady pace. Sam's head snapped in that direction, his eyebrows furrowing.

"I do not miss it." He panted, his eyes hardening. "Believe what ever the hell you want." He shook his head. "Believe I did it because I couldn't wait to be 007. Believe I did it because I think I'm super man and that only I could possibly save the day. I don't really give a shit Fiona. But do not tell me how I felt!"

"Okay." Sam clapped his hands together, standing up so quickly he almost knocked over Nate and his tray of sandwiches. "Oh look! Lunch!"

Fiona was still staring at her husband who's eyes were focused on the wall behind her as he tried to regain his composure.

"What's this? Roast beef! Looks great!" He cheerily reached a sandwich out towards me. I took it halfheartedly as Fiona turned on her heals and rushed out the door.

Nate called after her shoving the tray at Sam and tossing a bag of chips on to the bed. Michael squeezed his eyes shut, but said nothing as his brother hurried after his wife.

…...


	16. The protege

Learning to be a spy is a process, like learning to be anything else. Like any other type skill, your level of mastery has a great deal to do with how much of a master at his craft your teacher is.

Let me put everyone's mind at rest, Michael Westen was one hell of a teacher. I was a fantastic spy. Coveted. Renown. I did not leave the job because I couldn't cut it. I left the job because I didn't have any intention of spending the rest of my life chasing ghosts. Afghanistan taught me all about chasing ghosts. Afghanistan was almost as good as a teacher as Michael Westen.

…...

"Fi!" Nate's sharp voice draws all of our attention to the staircase. "Fi wait a second. Just a second!" He grabbed her roughly by the arm as her feet hit the landing before jumping down to stand in front of her. "He didn't mean that."

"Oh.. yes he did." She breathed, her head curving sharply, angling out her perfect chin. "He did."

"That's what Larry told him!" Nate blurted as Fiona tried to yank her arm away. "That he missed it. That he jumped right back in."

Fiona stopped fighting and met Nate's eyes, her lips parting.

"Look Fi, I don't even think he remembers, but obviously it triggered something." Nate pointed back to the second floor and for a second it looked like Fiona was going straight back up before she pulled her arm from her brother in law and charged down the basement steps. "No! No, Fi come on!"

"Get Sam!" Jesse yelled back at Nate. He and I both took off running for the basement.

"Damn Son of a Bitch!" She was growling as she launched herself onto our captive, pressing her forearm against his neck. "You sick son of a-!"

"Fiona!" Jesse charged forward and wrapped his arms around her waist pulling her off of Larry who sputtered and choked until he started to laugh.

"Why Mrs. Westen! I was wondering when you'd show up!" He rasped. "Took you longer than I expected. Quick take the blindfold off so I can savor the worried expression on your exotic little features!"

"I'd stop talking if I were you." Jesse called, still wrestling with Michael's wife.

"Oh I'm not afraid of Fiona!" Larry sang, with one final throat clearing cough. "I understand the emotional burden she's been under. It's so hard being someones second choice."

My eyes widened when Fi's foot came back and connected forcefully with Jesse's shin sending him to the floor with a yelp. She had a gun now, and I silently wondered who takes a Walther with them on a walk with their three year old. Fiona Glenanne apparently.

I had dropped to Jesse's side when I heard her cock it. I turned around just as she pressed the barrel to his tempel. Larry momentarily flinched, his eyebrows raising as if he was trying to see over the blindfold.

"Oh she's finally going rouge!" Larry squealed in delight. "You must be so tired of being June Cleaver!"

"Shut up!" Her tiny body shook and I gratefully looked towards the stairs when Sam busted in.

"Fi!" He rushed the steps, his feet galloping like a horse before laying his hand over hers carefully. "Come on."

"It's everyone's favorite trained seal!" Larry's face reddened as he spit the words out of his mouth "She may have the guts, but you.. do not."

Sam knocked the safety back on Fi's gun before wrapping his arm around her waist and handing her off to Nate who cautiously wrapped his hand around her non-injured wrist despite her attempt to shrug him off. Jesse stood up and limped over, holding his hand out for the Walther, shooting Fiona an irritated glare. She slapped the gun back in his hand and turned away, stalking wordlessly upstairs.

"You okay?" I looked down at Jesse, he'd settled on the steps, still rubbing at his leg.

"Yeah!" He grumbled, looking back towards the stairs with a death glare.

I patted his shoulder before following Fiona up the steps. I heard the commotion as soon as I opened the door. After the mug incident, I probably should have expected flying objects. I still found myself ducking in surprise as one of Nate's shoes flew through the sitting room. I was really thankful that we'd finished putting the dishes away, the damage costs were rising and I was pretty sure I wasn't going to get my deposit back.

"Please!" I yelled, reaching up and knocking down the second shoe just before it hit a window. "Stop breaking things!" She stopped, sinking to the couch, her chest still heaving. "Thank you." I watched her legs shake up in down before she dropped her face into her hands. "Long day?"

She let out a dry laugh before shooting me a deadly grin, I sighed.

"Did Mike ever talk to you about Afghanistan?" I switched techniques dropping beside her on the couch. She looked at me and blinked. "It was the last mission we worked together, before I got out. I think it was just a few months after he left Ireland." Her eyes flashed up at that, then back down, she stared at the backs of her hands. "I didn't know why, but I knew he was different."

Fiona took a long slow breath, swipping her hair from her eyes before meeting mine.

"The night before all hell broke loose? We were afraid to sleep. You could feel in the air that the place was going to just.. Well.. it wasn't a good feeling." I swallowed hard before continuing. "Michael looks over at me and says.. '_There was a girl in Ireland_'." The corners of her lips twitched involuntarily. "I think he knew I was ready to walk away and he wanted me to know that he'd thought the same thing."

"Why did you?" She says finally.

"What?" Her sudden question surprised me.

"You got out, broke the bond of duty and patriotism! Road off into the sunset. You made it look easy." Fiona shook her head. "You didn't even have to blow up a house."

I chuckled.

"I'm not Michael Westen." I shook my head and she rolled her eyes.

"Lucky me, I just happened to fall in love with the one indispensable operative in America?" She scoffed.

"He chose you." I told her bluntly, putting my hand on her arm. She licked her lips and started to protest. "He chose you." I told her a little more forcefully. "Not because of Claire, or North Korea, or because his mom died.." Her eyes filled with tears. "Because _there was a girl in Ireland_."

Sam's heavy foot steps on the stairs was what jarred her damp eyes from mine. I stood up when she looked at him.

"Lucy you might want to take Jesse some ice for his shin." His eyes never left Fiona's and I watched her gulp when he took a few steps closer.

They stared silently at each other as I gathered the ice and started toward the basement door.

"Lucy?" I turned back to the girl that my mentor met in Ireland. "You never answered my question. Why'd you leave?"

"Because I still could." I smiled.


	17. the little brother

My brother doesn't usually yell. He squawks, he sputters, he conveys his disappointment in a mere fleeting glance.

But he doesn't yell.

I'm not saying never, but I'd known Fiona Glenanne for almost fifteen years that October, and I had never heard Michael raise his voice to her like that. That October night I spent a great deal of time trying to remember if he'd ever yelled at me like that. I'm sure he had. Maybe when we were kids, or when I'd done something particularly irresponsible and self distructive. But, at the time I couldn't remember. Normally he'd sigh in exasperation, maybe moan my name. On rarer occasions maybe yelp my name, but when you grow up with a raging alcoholic for a father, you remember that a harsh voice can sometimes do more damage to a person then a fist.

…...

I'd met Michael's monomaniacal stalker once before our little French get away. He'd been in town messing with Michael's head the first time I'd brought Ruth home to meet my family.

During my little stay in the pych ward, I'd learned much more than I ever needed to know. Watching him now made him seem almost pathetic.

It was almost like when Dad died. Watching the big bad man waste away before your eyes was almost as rewarding as it was pity inducing. That was the part my brother sucked at, the watching part.

Mike was a man of action. He was usually so busy looking at the big picture he missed what was right there in front of him. I didn't come up with that one. Mom had told me that once, during my brother's exile in Miami.

Larry Sizemore seemed to be a man of power, even when he clearly had none. He'd been taunting Sam since the man had saved him from the wrath of my sister in law.

"Shut the hell up before we inject you with Zombie drug." I hissed.

"I'm sorry I don't think we've been introduced." He called in the direction of my voice, extending his hand the inch that Jesse's restraints would allow.

"Enough!" Sam's voice rumbled, he pointed at me. "Stay here till Lucy gets back." I followed him across the room with my eyes. "I'm going to go fix this mess." He sighed before looking at the prisoner again. "Jesse, shut him the hell up and then call who you have to call to find him the darkest dark hole there is."

…...

"Hey Bro." He was laying flat on the bed, Maddox sleeping across his bare chest. He hadn't lifted his forearm off his eye's when I came in, a sure sign he already knew it was me. "We wake up the little man?"

His head nodded slightly and I sat on the other side of the bed, he finally looked at me.

"Sam stop her?" It wasn't really a question. He knew the answer.

"Yeah." I raised my eyelids and played along. "Think he's got her pretty well calmed down."

"He's good at that." Michael took a long breath.

"Wish my marriage had one of those." I sighed.

"One of what?" His face went blank like it usually did when he felt something. Most people thought that it was something he'd learned as a spy. I knew better, my brother had perfected hiding all but the most overwhelming of emotions long before he knew what covert ops even was. It was his way to silently spite the old man. Nothing pissed Frank Westen off as much as not instilling fear in his prey.

"Someone to come in and do all the shit work when things go bad. Smooth over all the rough spots." I grinned. "Must be nice."

"Yeah, it's great." Mike's flat voice hummed.

"Look, Bro." I looked at the ceiling. "You've been through hell I get it, but Fiona's been through like, hell's ghetto okay? And when she's weak you've got to be strong, that's just how it works right?" His eyebrow raised for a second before he closed his eyes. "Right now? She's down stairs starring out the same damn window she was glued to the whole time you were gone. It's like she's still wondering if she's going to get you back. Sam's trying to convince her that you're just stressed out and Lucy's having a heart to heart about how she wasn't your second choice."

Michael's eyes opened again and his head turned towards mine.

"For as long as I've known her, she's feared the actual possibility that someone or something was going to charge in and take you away from her."

"Yeah." I knew that my brothers mono-toned acknowledgment was his attempt to get me to stop, but I wasn't stopping.

"Actually I can think of like one thing she's more afraid of than that." I shrugged, looking at his exhausted eyes.

"That I'd go willingly." He finished. We sat in silence for a while, listening to the slow snore of my nephew before I smiled, leaning back against the headboard.

"You know what Mom would say if she were here?" I asked, leaning forward and gathering Maddox into my arms. Michael blinked at me. "Get the hell out of this bed and go fix it, Michael." I teased, wobbling my head back and forth as much like our mother as I could before bringing two slightly V'd fingers to my lips and sucking noisly.

One side of my brother's mouth rose as he reached for his shirt before painfully wrestling it on. He held his breath as he pulled himself to his feet and slowly made his way to the door.

"Don't fall down the stairs or she may use that Walther on me." I reminded with a chuckle.

…...


	18. Michael and Fiona vs Larry and the Past

Michael and Fiona vs. Larry and the Past

...

**A/N couldn't resist the whole side effects thing. I actually laughed during my research! I knew i had to put it in somewhere. If anyone wants to take a crack at that one.. be my guest. That would be hillarious. I might have to try one at somepoint.**

...

"Whoa, Mikey what are you doing out of bed?" Sam jumped to my aide and I quickly waved him off, my eyes slipping past him to Fi.

"It's time Sam." I swallowed, holding my wife's tearful gaze.

"You sure?" He asked softly, I nodded turning to him.

"Get him ready for me?" I patted Sam's shoulder confidently.

"What ever you say, Brother." He looked at Fiona, raising his eyebrows before heading down stairs.

I took my time in reaching the windows, pulling Fiona back to the chair and sitting on the arm. I said nothing for a long time. She didn't break the silence or the eye contact and I was grateful for both.

She pressed her lips together when my palm slid onto her cheek, tears slipping down my thumb like a ramp, running over her lips and onto my wrist.

"Shh.." I choked, swallowing hard and pressing my lips to her forehead. "I'm sorry."

"Don't! I shouldn't have-."

"When Sam called me and told me the job went bad-."

"We don't have to do-." She shook her head. I shushed her.

"Maybe if I told you more often how I feel you wouldn't have to guess. You always guess wrong." I chuckled then pulled back, rubbing away the tears with my thumbs, she nodded. "I got scared. I panicked and I didn't think it through. Loosing you is not an option Fiona. It's just not."

"Why is it that this argument took three weeks and a kidnapping for us to resolve it?" She sniffed, pressing her head into my chin. I tilted my face up, nestling her against the crock of my neck.

"Cause it's us." I sighed. "Wanna go help me put this to bed?"

She sniffed before lifting her head back and nodding.

…...

I yanked the blindfold off Larry with one quick motion. (It's more disorienting that way.) I stood stoically on my burning legs as he blinked and focused.

It gave me a moment to look at him and try to remember him for who he'd been when I met him. He hadn't been perfect, but he hadn't been as crazy as he'd become.

A little like Fi really, not dwelling too much on the details. The semantics, my wife would have called it. Not really caring who indirectly got hurt as long as it was someone who didn't serve his purpose.

Apparently I'm attracted to those types.

The difference being that Fiona had grabbed her gun and ran into the fight out of grief. Revenge really. She saw a wrong and wanted it to be right, no matter how many people were killed in the process. Then she grew beyond it, she saw another path and she took it. I've wondered a lot in the last twenty two years how much of that had to do with me.

Larry had stood in the middle of peace and created ciaos for the sake of greed. Maybe power. He saw opportunity and wanted it to be his own, killing as many loose ends as possible in the process. He seeped deeper and deeper into it, wandering more and more away from any path that would have saved him. Again and again he tried to pull me into the thicket with him.

If it weren't for Sam and Fiona? I might have gone.

"Hello Son!" Larry greeted. "Back on your feet I see?"

Maybe then I realized why Larry and I had 'worked well together' for all those years. Maybe then I realized that it wasn't so much that Larry Sizemore was like some little part of me. Maybe just maybe it was because some little part of me still wanted Frank Westen's approval, and Larry's pride filled borderline obsession was as close as I was going to get until our prearranged meeting in hell.

"Never better." I said coyly. He looked at Fiona like a cat looks at a goldfish and I stood a little straighter.

"Bring the little woman down here to do your dirty work? Can't shoot your old pal Larry yourself?"

"Yeah, see.." I took a deep breath and looked at Fi with a huff. "We talked about it, and decided you're not worth the bullets." I sucked in a quick breath, turning back. "We're just going to turn you in."

"I'll tell them you're alive." He shook his head no. I smiled.

"I think they'll find that harder to believe than you might think." I exhaled. "Seeing as Jesse found you in a mental institution being treated for_ delusions_." I clicked my cheek, looking at the man on my left. "Very sad."

"I think we all saw it coming though, Mikey." Sam nodded back at me.

"You think I can't talk my way out of that? You think I can't convince some idiotic lackey's that I'm not insane? You think they won't come looking for you?"

I raised my eyebrows before dropping them just as quickly.

"Yep."

"Is it time for the head bag now?" Fiona asked cheerily. "I'm tired of looking at him."

"You really want to do that?" Larry argued. "Go back to plan B? Rush back to being locked in the suburban nightmare with this albatross hanging around your neck?" He jetted his head towards Fiona and I elbowed him in the face.

"Yep." I smiled widely, watching the blood trickle from his nose.

"Your making a mistake." He snorted as I finally allowed myself to sit in one of the chairs, trying not to look too relived. Fiona put her hand on my shoulder before slipping her fingers to my neck. I tugged her onto my lap with a sigh. "You'll regret it."

I kept my eyes on my wife and shook my head just enough to be sure she saw it.

Sam reached into the cooler and pulled out a beer before holding up a peach yogurt.

"No blueberry?" I asked casually as Larry continued to yell.

"Upstairs." Sam shrugged. I stuck out my hand and he handed me the peach. I scooped out a bite before offering one to Fiona.

We waited, passively eating yogurt until Jesse returned. At some point, Fi had slipped off my lap, patted Larry harshly on the cheek and dropped a pillowcase over his face.

Jesse and Nate arrived a few minutes later.

"My guys are here. They wanna talk to Sam and Fi at their camp, but they're ready to take our guest here. You better stay down here and act dead for a few." He raised his eyebrows at me and I nodded.

Nate took Sam's chair as he got up and unshackled Larry from the chair before he and Jesse hauled him up the steps. Fiona kissed my cheek before following them.

…...

"Wow that took forever." I sighed groggily as my wife slipped into the room, pulling off her coat and scarf before wiggling out of her sweater and pants before joining me in the bed. "Oh my God you're so cold." I gasped as she slid her hands up the front of my shirt and giggled. Her eyes met mine and I smiled. "Hi."

"Hi."

"Larry gone?"

"For good." She nodded. "Yelling and screaming to search the house for Michael Westen alive and well."

"No one bought it?"

"I don't think anyone cared." She smiled.

"Someone has too." I balked. "Or you blew up my mom's house for nothing."

"I care." She hummed and I grunted as she ran a cold foot up my inner thigh before I playfully knocked it away with my hand.

"I love you." She froze, her icy hands and feet freezing mid torture. I watched her eyes blink and her mouth slip open. "I don't know why that's still so hard for me to say."

"Michael." Her breathy whisper sent a cliché of chills up my spine, as the gentle pressure of her hand settled on my chest. "I love you too."

I nodded, pressing my lips against hers sweetly at first before pressing my togue against hem and probing deeper. She met my mouth with hers for a moment before pulling away.

"You're not cleared for this." She panted.

"Why?" I nearly whined.

"The drugs can cause.." She swallowed hard, still trying to catch her breath. "Negative Sexual side effects.."

"I don't think that I'm having that problem right now." I breathed, pulling her tight against me.

"Including an erection lasting longer than four hours.." She continued quickly.

"Doesn't sound so negative.." I purred pressing my lips along her throat.

"Requiring medical intervention." She squeaked. I froze.

"Medical intervention?" I murmured.

"You really want me to wake Sam up for that emergency?"

"No." I decided, lifting my head up to blink at her. "How long we talking here?"

"Of an erection?" She blinked back at me, I smiled widely.

"Before I'm cleared for this." I gestured between us and her face softened in embarrassment.

"Seventy two hours." She replied dutifully.

"And it's been?" I watched her eyes to a far off gaze as she did the math.

"About sixty." She breathed, running her hands unconsciously up and down my arms. "So tomorrow?"

I leaned in and swiped her lips with mine, before settling down next to her.

"We could just talk." I announced, running my hand from the base of her bra to the waistband of her panties and back. She grabbed my hand and flung it away before sliding out of bed and pulling on a pair of my boxers and a shirt. I pressed my lips together to keep from laughing at her as she slid back under the blankets. "Now we can anyway."

"If I asked you some things.. would you tell me the truth?"

"When have I ever not done that?" I asked her honestly, turning her face to look at me. She watched my eyes. "I've always tried to tell you the truth." She nodded her head, and I kissed her temple.

"Do you? Miss it?" She clicked her gaze to me and I swallowed.

"Sometimes." I admitted. "When you and Sam have a client that you really feel strongly about. When my mind wanders and I wonder about current events. How the world is fairing. I miss being.. involved." She inhaled sharply, but stopped what ever defensive retort she had. I smiled at her and traced her cheek with my index finger. "I do remember why we decided it should be that way. I'm just not sure it will always have to be."

"What if I told you right now there is no longer and North and South Korea? Only Korea." I felt the hair stand up on the back of my neck as my eyes flashed in to hers. "See my point?"

I took a slow steady breath.

"Just because I would want to do something about it doesn't mean I'd run off and join the resistance." I assured her. "Wouldn't you want to?"

"Not if it meant loosing you." She pleaded.

"You are not loosing me." I promised. "This was a fluke, a mistake." She closed her eyes and I grasped for what ever I could. "A reminder."

"A risk. It was a risk."

"It wasn't a betrayal Fiona. Or a rejection." I cupped her face in my palms, pushing my fingers into her hair. "I want to be with you. I chose you. I chose you because I wanted to be with you."

"You chose me because I got myself pregnant." She whispered.

"That is not true." I was pleading now. "I chose you because you make me better. _Stronger. Smarter_. I chose you because you save me from myself. Because at the end of the day, when the dust cleared? If you were happy, that was all that mattered."

"Michael." She rolled her eyes at me.

"I've had you with out the job and you with the job. Which did I pick in the end?"

"In the end.." She bit her lip.

"Yes. In the end." I ducked my head closer and caught her gaze before pushing the words out in a rushed whisper. "I had to go back Fi. Just to prove to myself and everyone else that I could. It was selfish and I'm sorry, but I had to."

She blinked at me a few times, her eyebrows furrowing and smoothing out. I let go of her face cautiously, watching the emotion flicker behind her docile features.

"Fiona?"

"I forgive you." She whispered airily. Now it was my turn to stare wordlessly.

"You forgive me?" I scoffed in disbelief. She nodded at me. "After all this time, you're finally just going to-?"

"You finally said the right thing." My eyes were starting to burn from not blinking. I forced my lids down and up a few times.

"I love you." I told her, like I was saying she was ridiculous, she smiled at me.

I grinned back before closing the distance and pressing my mouth to hers rather urgently. She responded wholeheartedly before pushing back.

"Twelve hours!" She gasped.

"In the last thirty years there has to be a moment when Sam needed my help for something as equally embarrassing." I told her, tugging up the back of the tee-shirt and unhooking her bra. "Probably worse."

"Probably." She agreed, wriggling out of my boxers as I tugged the rest of my clothes off.

…...


	19. Sam and Claire vs Truth and Speculation

Sam and Claire vs the Truth and Speculations

**A/N I did leave you hanging a little. I promise my next chapter of "Lies" will be pure smut.. this show however, has to go on.**

…...

"Why in the name of Jimmy Hoffa are you still awake?" That was my Uncle Sam, managing to make me smile in my moment of ten year old misery. I'd shrugged my shoulders. "It's after midnight Claire." He rolled his eyes, shooing me to the far side of my bed and climbing up next to me.

"Is the guy in the basement gone?" I whispered.

"Yeah." Sam's eyebrows rose and he got a bizarre look on his face. I realized that no one had told him that I knew about the guy in the basement. He didn't ask me how I knew and I appreciated that. "Jesse's people came and took him away."

At ten I was very accustom to people having 'people'. My dad used to have people. Jesse had people. Lucy had people. I don't remember not knowing what it meant, but I don't know if I really understood back then.

"We're going to stay a few days. Then we'll go back to Guernsey." He told me, slinging an arm over my shoulder. My stomach dropped and I bit my lip.

"We.." I looked out the window. "Couldn't we just stay here?"

My breathing quickened and Sam noticed immediately.

"Claire?"

"I mean.. We don't know if Guernsey is safe anymore." I knew it wasn't. I knew it wasn't safe at all.

"It is." Sam shook his head slowly, turning to look at me. "There's no reason-."

"Kiley Goodel!" I shouted. Sam flinched.

"The little girl down the street?" He looked at me suspiciously and I drew my knees up to my chest.

"I told her things." I blurted, the tears burning my eyes and making the edges of my uncles face blur.

"You told her-." He tilted his head to the side and crunched his eyebrows. I waited for his chin to wiggle from side to side. It always did when he was trying to decide what to say. A look or surprise sprung to his face and his chin wiggled. "Like.. told her your dad was a spy and and your mom was IRA?"

I sighed loudly, my body deflating like a raft with a big hole as the words I'd been working so hard to keep in flooded out.

"She said mom was weird. So, I asked her what she meant by that. She said that it was weird that mom called me by my last name all the time. So I told her that it wasn't always my last name and that I had another last name because my dad was in the military when my mom got pregnant and they didn't get married until after I was born. I told her that we lived in Miami and that my grandma died and we moved here." I stopped gasping for breath and waiting for my punishment.

"Claire. You know better." He whispered softly.

"I'm sorry. I didn't know that Kiley Goodel knew the guy in the basement." I shook my head, feeling the tears fling onto my cheeks. "I didn't know the guy in the basement knew Daddy."

My Uncle Sam grunted, his face looked heartbroken when he reached out and cuffed his big hand behind my head.

"Claire. Your dad did not get kidnapped because the little girl down the street knew we lived in Miami." He assured me. "The guy in the basement, Larry.. his name was Larry, knew your dad really well a long time ago." He licked his lips. "**I **did something, on a job. That let Larry know that your Dad was still alive."

"You.." I remember feeling the air around me get thinner as the words sunk in.

"This was my fault Claire." He assured me. "I promise you.. the fact that you told Kiley a little bit about your real life was just a coincidence."

"A coincidence." I breathed. He nodded at me.

"Why didn't you talk to me about this before?" He asked gently.

"I'm not supposed to tell." I muttered.

"Yeah well, I'm not supposed to involve your father in jobs. Your Dad's not supposed to _get_ involved and you mother isn't supposed to keep C-4 in the shed. No one's perfect." He grumbled, sliding off the bed and pulling the comforter up around me. "Go to bed. The four of us are going to talk about this some more in the morning."

"Mom's going to be mad." I whispered.

"You're mom's not going to be-." He stopped, eyebrows arching. "Well she's not going to be **that** mad."

…...

"Guys?" I called again feebly, knocking softly on the door in an attempt not to wake the whole house.

"Yes. Sam." Fiona finally answered, swinging back the door, adjusting her robe and glaring at me. I held up my palms and wondered if I'd lied to Claire about Fiona not being that mad.

"Just wanted to give you guys a little heads up on the parental front that's all."

"What's wrong?" Micheal moaned from the bed, the sheets gathered around his lower body.

"Claire.. she um.." I looked at him again and then back to Fiona. "She had this crazy idea that this all happened because of something she told the kid down the street. You know it's only been like sixty hours right?"

I looked at Fiona, her head dropped back and she gaped at the ceiling.

"Claire thought it was her fault?" Michael made a face.

"Yeah.. I set her straight." I pushed my tongue against my cheek. "Seriously you guys couldn't hold off for one more night?"

"Sam!" Mike groaned as Fiona tried to shut the door on me.

"I told the kid we'd talk to her in the morning." I stuck my shoulder against the frame and my foot in the doorway. Fiona pushed harder. "Oh, and don't come crying to me when you can't _lower the flag_."

"Enough!" Fiona stomped on my foot, slamming the door when I jumped back.

"Good night, Lovebirds!"

I'm guessing it was a shoe she threw at the door. I winced and looked around, sure she'd woken the whole house. When no one made a sound I limped back to my room.

…...

Uncle Sam and Dad were waiting for mom. I was waiting for mom's wrath, pinned against the wall outside the room.

"Everything go okay last night?" I could hear the smirk in my uncle's voice.

"You better knock that off." My father was trying not to laugh at him.

"You don't look.. tense."

"Stop." My dad chuckled.

"I'm just saying it's a serious medical problem requiring urgent attention."

"Oh I got urgent attention." My dad's soft playful voice puzzled me enough that I peaked around the door.

"I bet you-."

"Hey! Baby Girl!" My father jumped almost as high as Sam and turned almost as red. "How'd you sleep?"

"Okay.." I climbed onto the bed and blinked at them. My dad took a deep breath. "I guess."

"It's gonna be okay kid. If your mom was one of those creatures that ate their young you'da been a goner a long time a go." Sam cocked his head to the side, it was his way of showing me he meant it.

"She's going to be disappointed."

"No one's disappointed in you, Baby Girl." My dad sighed.

"In ourselves maybe.." My mother's voice came from the door way and I watched my dad's face soften into a smile. ".. but never you."

"We should have had this conversation out loud. In front of you instead of in half sentences where you could hear us." Sam added as my mom climbed on the bed beside me.

"I've been told, that it's easier for someone to tell you how their feeling instead of letting them guess." She pushed my dark hair from my face and looked me in the eye. "I'm really sorry I never stopped to ask."

"You were busy." I defended her and she smiled at me. "You were trying to save Daddy." I watched my mothers face before she leaned in and kissed my forehead.

"Claire." My dad took a deep breath. "We think it's time you start coming to our little team meetings."

"Like our 'should we go back to Guernsey' meeting." Sam added, looking at his watch. "Oh look it's about to start!"

I rolled my eyes at him.

"I like Guernsey. Not as much as Miami.. but I like it."

"Me too." My mom sighed, looking at the guys.

"It's a tactical nightmare, but the schools are good." My dad shrugged, Sam stifled a laugh before nodding.

"People are nice."

"The low population puts you at dangerous risk of running out of _lady friends_." My mother added, he gave her a dirty look.

"We have to talk about jobs." It was his serious voice. I'm assuming it was his official job voice. "It's not safe for me to take them and I'm starting to wonder if it's safe for you two."

He looked lazily at my mother, I think he though she was going to protest. She didn't, she just hung her head for a moment before looking at Sam.

"I don't know, Brother." Sam mumbled, looking away from my mom and out the window.

"What if.." I stopped, looking at my father, wondering if I had full team member privileges or if this was a listen but keep your mouth shut situation. His eyes clicked up to me and his brows rose encouragingly. "What if we.. you." I blushed. "Chose jobs by committee, like we do in Girl Guides."

"Girl Guides?" Uncle Sam's face lit up. "What exactly are they teaching you in Girl Guides?"

"No." I giggled. "It's.. we vote on what projects we want to do. We talk about resources we'll need and problems we can try to work around."

"Fi?" My dad looked at my mom.

"It didn't go so well before." She seemed to be weighing the possibilities.

"That was before." He admitted. "Kidnappings tend to humble a guy."

"We could try." She seemed to be reluctantly deciding as we spoke.

"Something looks to big or bad we get out. Call it in and walk away." Sam arched his eyebrows at my mom and I realized she must be the one who had the hard time doing that. It made sense. Fiona McBride (Westen) did not give up.

She nodded at Sam, before her eyes met my dad's. He smiled at her.

"What about the Goodel's?" I asked quietly. My mom looked like she might dismiss it but my Dad took a breath.

"Can't be to careful." I couldn't tell if he was humoring me or not when he turned to my Uncle Sam. "What do we have on them."

"Celeste and Kevin Goodel, two kids Kiley and Kate. No criminals. Not even a parking ticket. Don't think they even have a car. No weapons, registered or any unregistered ones hidden where I could locate. He works at a resturant in England she stays at home. Only living relatives are a sister and niece in Guernsey, Patty and Lillian-."

"What did you do interrogate these people and search their house?" My mother exclaimed, her eyes wide.

"She spent the night there Fi I had to check them out." I remembered spending the night there once. For Kiley's birthday party. It made me wonder if Sam kept dossiers on all my play dates.

"I think the Goodel's are safe." My dad used his sing song placating voice for my mom and Sam before winking at me. "We have a plan now, lets use it."

"Then we'll do this the Girl Guide way." My uncle nodded, clapping his hands against his thighs as he rose. "Lets get this train moving then. We have people to take the airport!"

"I have to get Maddox dressed." My mom whispered, kissing my cheek and then my father's before moving out the door.

"Well Baby Girl. It's just you and me."

"I'm sorry Dad." I sighed. "For what I said to Kiley."

"You didn't totally blow our cover, Claire. Just blurred it a little." He opened his arms and I climbed onto his lap. I almost felt to big at first till, his strong arms lifted my legs over the arm of the chair. "It happens."

"To you?"

"How do you think I met your mother?" He snorted. I giggled.

"I'm going to miss them." I sighed.

"Who?"

"Our real people." I looked towards the door, then back to him. "Our Miami people."

I waited for him to tell me that the people in Guernsey were real too. I waited for him to make some comment about how we'd see them again soon even though I knew we wouldn't. Instead he smirked sadly at me,

"Me too." He brushed my forehead with his lips and I leaned against his chest, listening to the full house rattle with activity.

"Claire." My dad's voice was fresh with realization. I opened my eyes. "Is there still a South Korea?"

…...

"I want to say I'll see you soon Buddy but I don't want to lie to you." I smacked Jesse on the back after kissing Lucy on the cheek.

"Sooner than three years." Jesse looked down at me and I nodded. "I'll give you a call in a few weeks. Make sure you got settled back in."

"You got it." I looked at Lucy who was helping Barry load the bags into the storage bins. "And Fi and the kids and I expect an invite." I pointed at him knowingly. "Don't wait as long as Mike did."

He rolled his eyes.

"I'll let you know after we actually go on a real date." Jesse shook his head.

"Dates are overrated." I waved him away before he shook my hand firmly, pulling me in and patting my back. He hugged Fiona tightly before climbing the steps into the plane.

"Now you take good care of your Momma and Daddy now." Virge was telling Claire, his voice a little sadder than I would have wanted. She rubbed at her eyes before wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing his cheek. He took a long look at Maddox before handing him to me. I clapped my hand down on his shoulder.

"I can't thank you enough for coming."

"Anything." Virgil's voice rasped and I added 'for Maddy's boys' in my head and nodded back at him.

"Take her something really pretty from us Virge. Tulips or something not just roses. They're boring." I bowed my head for a second and he smiled.

"Still go every Tuesday. I'll have a lot to tell her when I get back."

"Take care of Nate for us too." I looked over his shoulder at Micheal's younger brother. He stood looking more than a little reluctantly at the run way. "It's hard for him, feeling like he's got no family."

Virge nodded.

"Take care Sam." He sighed, smiling at Maddox before joining the group already on the plane.

Nate had wandered over to Fiona and was soundlessly kicking dirt around his shoes. Claire was at Fiona's waiste, wiping her face with the end of her scarf. Fi threw her arms around Nate, molding her hand into the back of his head and pulling him to her tightly.

He stiffened in surprise before returning the embrace, I watched his eyes squeeze shut. He looked at Claire and kissed the top of her head before lumbering quickly towards me and Maddox.

"Take good care of them Sam." He choked, pressing his lips to Maddox's small cold fist.

"We couldn't have done this with out you Nate." I said honestly. He smiled. "Do me another favor would you? Maybe give Virgil a call? Invite him out to see your kids. I think he's just really missing your mom right now."

"Lot of that going around." Nate grinned nostalgically before hugging me too.

We waved goodbye from the tarmac until the plan taxied away. I handed Maddox to Fiona and guided Claire back to the car.

"Come on. Your Dad promised he'd have Dinner ready by five and it's already 10 till." I reminded. Fiona looked over at me when I started the car and swallowed hard.

"How long do you think?" She asked with a sniff.

"Who knows. Maybe they'll be a wedding?" She rolled her eyes, but smiled just the same, casting her gaze out the window and watching France slip past us.

…...


	20. Nate and Virgil vs Reality and Fantasy

Nate and Virgil vs. Reality and Fantasy

…..

I knew at the time I shouldn't have been standing there listening to my dead mother's boyfriend tell her about our recent vacation, but I couldn't seem to look away.

"Oh and Maddox? Spitting image of Fiona. I'm telling you Maddy he's just adorable. You'd have spoiled him rotten by now. He's a lot like you really, watching his Momma and Daddy and Sam like a referee at a tennis match. It's real cute." He laughed a little, skimming his hand over the gravestone. "Real cute."

He walked back a few steps, sitting on the bench and crossing one ankle over his knee.

"I tell you, Nate did real good. You'd have been real proud. And ole Sam's taking really good care of things, just like you asked him to. Oh! I think Jesse finally found himself the right girl for him. She is a looker too. I was nice having the old gang back together. Real nice.."

His voice trailed off and I walked closer, clearing my throat.

"Hey Virge."

"Nate? I thought you were headed straight to the airport?" I shrugged, from him to the headstone and back again. My flight from Miami to Vegas didn't leave for five more hours. I had intended to wait at Miami International, instead I had ended up at Virgil's front door.

"Jesse said you come here on Tuesdays, so when you weren't home I thought I'd try." I raised and lowered my eyebrows before making a face. "I didn't mean to.." Interrupt somehow seemed like the wrong word to use.

"No. It's. It's fine." He scooted down, making room for me on the bench. I sat somewhat reluctantly. "You been back here since the funeral?"

I shook my head, looking at the tulips, at my feet at the group of trees, anyplace but at my mother's gravestone.

"I can understand that. Most young people don't like places like this." He sighed.

"It's.. I just don't think she's.. you know.. here."

"I'm sure she's not." He laughed. "But I'd like to think that when I come here? She has to listen to me then right?"

"I guess." I smiled at that. My eyes fell on my father's stone a few feet away and I got that feeling again. The one that made me want to head back to Vegas.

"Fiona insisted that their be some space between them." He added, gesturing to my father's spot. "She said they weren't going to the same places anyhow."

That's one of the things I loved about my sister in law. She thought about things like that.

"That's Fi for you." I breathed. "My dad wasn't the nicest guy in the world."

"I know all about that son." He sighed again, looking at me like I was actually his son and not the son of a man that didn't deserve to be buried next to my mother. "You're Momma had her reasons for not going, but she had her regrets about it too. She talked a lot about that towards the end."

I though for a second about a world where my mother had left my father. Met a nice man, a good provider. Someone like Virgil Watkins.

"What were you looking for me for anyway?" He reached his arms out behind us, streatching back, at ease on his familiar bench.

"I was thinking about my kids. How they've never really had grandparents. How Claire and Maddox have Sam." I stopped, looking at the guy my mom had fallen for and seeing him suddenly as the family I might be longing for. "I was hoping I could convince you to come out the Vegas for Christmas. If you know, your not doing something with Melody."

Virgil looked back at my mother's headstone like he was checking with her first before he smiled at me a slow even smile that made his eyes shine.

"I think I'd like that very much."

…...


	21. Jesse and Lucy vs Home and Heart

Jesse and Lucy vs Home and Heart

"So.. um I guess that's everything." I set down the last of her luggage, my eyes looking around her penthouse apartment. The view was breathtaking. The interior was utterly stunning. "This is how the other half lives, huh?"

"The secrets they never tell you when you're a spy.. the private competition pays soo much better." She smiled. "Want a drink?"

"Sure." I sat down carefully on her white sofa, somehow feeling a little too big and clumsy to be there.

"Kind of crazy being back in Miami huh?" She called from the kitchen.

"Surreal." I agreed half hardheartedly. We had to get to the important stuff soon. The _'are we going to have a first date or did we just sleep together in France'_ stuff. "Almost as surreal as this apartment." I stood up again, wandering around the room until I found a place to lean. I pushed my hands against the bar handle of the balcony door. "Makes my place look like a dump."

"Yeah?" I jumped at how closer her voice was, turning as she held out a drink glass.

"Yeah." I put the glass to my lips. "I don't even want to go home now."

"You could just stay here." I choked, inhaling the whiskey based mixed drink into my lungs, with gusto. She waited patiently as I tried to convince my body it wasn't drowning. I watched through blurry eyes the coy smile that came to her lips.

"Yeah.. I could stay the night." I rasped once I could draw enough breath. She smiled again, handing me a napkin as I dabbed the ridiculously embarrassing tears off my face.

"Or.. you could just stay.. indefinitely?" She bit her lip with the smallest touch of insecurity and I was done for.

"Yeah." I inhaled fully, pulling my self up and reaching out for her hands. "I could do that too."

We were married seven months later.


	22. The McBride's vs The Westen's

**A/N I loved this story.. this chapter is a reward for all of you who stuck with it. :) Enjoy. I will probably do some more one shots in this universe because I cannot just let it go!**

* * *

The McBride's vs The Westen's

...

Reality is a strange thing, Manipulating you're own reality is much easier than one might think. The day before I was fairly certain I was Michael McBride; stay at home shadow writer/ father of two. Who may or may not on occasion help his wife and 'older brother' help out a _friend_.

The day in question however, when I woke up to the sounds of my full house I realized I was once again Michael Westen, and I used to be a spy.

My wife rolled over with a huff, her auburn hair slapping against my arm when she does. I smiled, pushing it off her face in soft strokes before kissing her. Another herd of what sound like buffalo, but were probably just all five Westen grandchildren, thunder past our bedroom door. They're followed quickly by Sam and Virgil's nervous bellows about staying away from the beach and making sure to keep an eye on Maddox and Mikey.

"When we agreed to host a wedding did we agree to being woken at seven am on a Saturday?" Fiona grumbled, her lips touching the skin on my neck as she nuzzled closer.

"I think that's just part of the deal." Her fingers sneeked up and she pinched my nipple playfully between her thumb and index finger. I grunted, rolling my spine out, drawing my warm body away from her until she let go. The smile on her lips felt nice against me.

Her hand crept lower.

"Fiona we have a house full of guests." I protested weakly as her fingers slipped below my waist band and she discovered my protests were merely intellectual.

"Then you'll have to be quiet Michael." She told me conspiratorially before wrapping her palm around my semi-aroused shaft and squeezing. I grunted as quietly as I could before her lips moved ever so slightly and attached themselves to my throat.

"Fiona." I mumbled, gently raking my fingers up and down her bare back. "When did you take off your clothes?"

She giggled back at my surprise.

"The desert children and their overbearing mother insisted Sam turn off the air conditioning. She said May was too cool for air conditioning." She hummed, her hand working more quickly now. She pushed my boxers half way down with her free hand and I braced my self against her shoulders, my chest heaving. "I was burning up."

"So you..ah.." I bit my lip as she ground her pelvis against my hip until I could feel her wet folds along my thigh. "Fiona.."

"Shhh..." She whispered in mock horror, removing her hand and sliding effortlessly on top of me, her body flat against mine. My lower body bucked up against hers as she went to work on my chest, nibbling and sucking my pecks, her nails grazing my abs, her sex rocking against my rock hard penis.

I moved forward attaching my lips to the junction between her shoulder and neck, licking, sucking and biting until she bit back a squeal. I grabbed at her hips, flexing until I could push my erection against her slick swollen apex. She gasped when I rocked once before arching her back and planting an arm on either side of me for leverage.

I squeezed her ass as she slid up and down the length of my shaft, both of us gasping lightly each time my tip met her clit, I waited for her to be ready, for the arch in her back to stiffen and her arms to shake. She took a staggered broken breath, fighting back the urge to shout with a barely contained 'ah'.

I pushed at her hips again, lifting her up enough to slip inside her when she rocked back down again. She cried out a little and I pressed her face to mine, sealing my lips over hers until her almost moan became a whimper. She took over our pace and I took over her breasts, cupping them, lifting them rubbing them softly, until each stroke became shaky and frantic. She yanked back up and looked at me urgently. I took the hint and flipped us seamlessly over, diving into her. She bit my shoulder, her nails tearing at the skin on my back as I picked up our pace until I couldn't hold out any longer. She whimpered and squeaked, sucking in air beneath me as I rested my weight against my forearms.

"Good morning." I panted, forcing my hand up to pull back her hair. She looked at me, still struggling to breathe, her lips wet and parted.

"Good morning indeed." She rolled her eyes.

"You started it."

"And you finished it." She leaned up and captured my lips as I pulled away, my body slipping reluctantly from hers. I tugged her with me when I turned onto my side.

"We have a long day." I reminded her.

"So far so good." She teased before propping herself up on her arm. "I call first on the shower."

She grinned mischievously at me, her tousled, knotted hair surrounding her beautiful face. I grabbed her arm as she started to get up.

She blinked at my serious expression. I don't know what she found there but I knew she liked it.

"I love you, Fi." I told her unquestionably. Her featured softened, but her grin didn't fade until her lips pressed against mine in a sweet chaste kiss.

"I love you more." She told me firmly before quickly making her way to the bathroom. I lay there on my back for quiet a while thinking about what made me who I am.

It didn't really matter in the end what I called myself. Michael Westen and Michael McBride had the most important things in common anyway.

We had also both fallen in love with a dangerous but irresistible Irish girl before we had a chance to even realize it was happening.

And neither one of us would change that for anything.


End file.
